DWTC 40-event season marks Dubai’s post-pandemic recovery

Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), the region’s leading exhibition organiser, said on Monday it has lined up over 40 business events from September to December – a 40 per cent increase on 2020.

Events to be staged at the DWTC, comprising diverse sectors including construction, energy, technology, beauty, food, healthcare, environment and automotive, will mark the emirate’s post-pandemic economic recovery.

“In what has been a challenging year for the international MICE industry, DWTC has led the way in safely reopening large-scale international events. The success of the past year is a testament to our agility, experience and enterprise as well as our long-standing commitment towards firmly positioning Dubai as a world leading MICE destination. We are excited about the upcoming season and presenting the best in business and trade to the world via Dubai,” said Mahir Abdulkarim Julfar, executive vice president, Venue Services Management, Dubai World Trade Centre.

The exhibition season will commence with The Big Five, the Mena region’s largest building and construction show, set to take place from September 12-15. For more than 40 years, The Big 5 has united the global construction community to explore opportunities in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia. The Big 5 will take place live in-person alongside nine specialised events covering the full construction cycle from conception to completion and beyond.

Gastech Conference and Exhibition 2021 and Society of Petroleum Engineers’ Annual Technical Conference & Exhibition (ATCE) will be held from September 21 to 23. These two events bring a big focus on energy and environment in the region, DWTC said in a statement. ATCE will feature sessions covering market-leading solutions and emerging technologies within the exploration and production industry.

Seamless Middle East, meeting place for the innovative minds across the payments, fintech, banking, retail, e-commerce, cards and identity industries, will be back with a two-day conference running September 29-30. It will feature over 300 speakers covering the latest trends, market disruptors and technologies shaping the payments, fintech, retail and e-commerce world.

Beautyworld Middle East will take place from October 5 to 7. The show will host exhibitors from 54 countries and 17 dedicated country pavilions, making it the first truly international beauty event of the year. Gitex Global, featuring the region’s premier technology and start-up events, returns from October 17-21. Gitex Technology Week and Gitex Future Stars will feature mega tech names from over 100 countries, unveiling their latest cutting edge-technology. Gitex Future Stars will host a variety of aspiring innovators and budding entrepreneurs across different sectors, all of whom will be given unrivalled opportunities to showcase ground-breaking ideas and network with investors, accelerators and incubators.

Taking place alongside GITEX Global, Ai Everything will highlight the biggest cross-sector tech moments during five power-packed days of networking, learning, business generation and inspiration.

Future Blockchain Summit will bring together the community’s brightest minds, most game-changing startups and powerful investors for four days of networking, investing and education centered around the most disruptive technology since the internet – Blockchain. The event will be held from October 17 to 20.

For the very first time, the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) will open its doors to the global space community in the United Arab Emirates, the first Arab country to host the IAC since its establishment in 1950.

Gulfood Manufacturing, the region’s leading F&B processing and packaging event is back from November 7-9 to continue the powerful momentum of doing high-value business, swapping insights and networking in the food production, processing and packaging realms. GFM will be held alongside Private Label and Licensing Middle East 2021.

The largest international trade show for the automotive aftermarket and service industry in the MEA region, the 18th edition of Automechanika Dubai runs December 14 – 16. With a host of new and returning features, along with exhibitors from around the world, the 2021 event is a must attend platform to absorb latest market trends and new innovations.

The 40-plus calendar line up also features events such as the Global Educational Supplies and Solutions (GESS), Arabplast, World LPG Week, The 85th General Meeting of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), Careers UAE, CABSAT Middle East, Middle East Natural and Organic Products Expo and others.

“As we continue to lead the MICE industry transformation in a post-pandemic world via a robust line up of upcoming events, we are confident DWTC will emerge as a key enabler in achieving Dubai’s vision of garnering further economic growth and diversification,” said Julfar.

— issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com