Qatar: Fertile ground for the trade fair industry

The Doha Exhibition and Convention Center is again hosting numerous well-established trade fairs in 2023. An automotive show will be premiering in October.

Trade fair professionals came together for the UFI Middle East & Africa (MEA) Regional Conference at the Fairmont Hotel in Doha in May. It was hosted by Visit Qatar, a UFI Diamond Sponsor. “Qatar is an ideal place to host the 2023 UFI Regional Conference,” commented Naji Naji El Haddad, UFI’s MEA regional director. “The city benefits from a vibrant, safe and promising business environment for everyone in the exhibition industry ecosystem.” And the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center (DECC) is a key component of this event-friendly environment. Chief executive officer Michael Michael had the opportunity to present this modern venue to delegates during the UFI Regional Conference.

He is able to impress visitors with both existing and newly won events. The DECC’s event calendar again looks healthy this year, as a number of prominent examples demonstrate. The 19th Doha Jewellery & Watches Exhibition was held there in February. For almost two decades now, it has been considered the epitome of luxury and elegance in Qatar, according to the organisers. Throughout that time, it has successfully preserved its reputation as a high-calibre event that brings together lovers of jewellery and global brands. This exhibition of luxury watches, necklaces, earrings, diamonds and gold and silver jewellery attracted around 30,000 visitors from over 175 countries. Jewellery lovers, top designers, aesthetes worth billions and a who’s who of Bollywood and Turkish film stars were among the crowds in the exhibition halls.

AgriteQ, the International Agricultural Exhibition, celebrated its ten-year anniversary in the middle of March at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center. It was originally launched to accelerate process of achieving the goals of Qatar’s national food security strategy. In contrast, the Geneva International Motor Show (GIMS) will be premiering this year. The first GIMS to be hosted in Qatar will be taking place from 5 to 14 October at the DECC and other prominent venues in Doha. GIMS Qatar will be held at the same time as the Formula One race in Qatar on 8 October. The organisers promise a festival of cars that will present the latest designs, innovations and automobile technology. There will also be new model presentations and test drives (www.decc.qa).

At an event held to present the show, Akbar Al Baker, the chairman of Qatar Tourism and chief executive of the Qatar Airways Group, declared: “Our Qatar National Vision 2030 strategy aims to position the State of Qatar as a world-leading destination which ensures that guests have an unforgettable experience.”