TRENDS IN 2019

Does new year mean new industry? Natasha Skoryk speaks to some of the industry’s key figures to see what’s on the cards for MICE in 2019.

Rick Taylor, of consulting firm The Business Tourism Company, predicts new convention bureaux appearing all over the continent. “Africa is under-performing in world MICE arrivals recording 3% of international association meetings, and 6% of international organisation and association meetings respectively, according to ICCA and UIA,” he says. He feels the reason for this underperformance is the lack of formal convention bureaux structures. “What has been missing in Africa is a comprehension of the technicalities required by Convention Bureaux as brokers of innovation in delivering the economic value and institutional legacies of MICE,” Rick explains.

Click here to continue reading in Event Issue 01.

LEAVING A LEGACY

Natasha Skoryk looks at the impact of business events on their host cities, countries, the world at large, and for the event industry itself.

The legacy footprint of events is best pictured as an iceberg. Floating above the surface, there’s the visible economic impacts made by visitors (this is primarily the revenue generated by the event attendees during the course of the event). Hidden below are the other economic impacts (many events provide a platform for businesses to generate revenue long after the event has ended). Finally, there’s the type of impact which is most difficult to measure: the indirect impact. The latter is naturally the largest section of the iceberg, yet remains largely unseen and is exceptionally difficult to quantify.

Click here to continue reading in Event Issue 01.

MEET THE CONTINENT AT MEETINGS AFRICA

What you can expect at the continent’s biggest conference and exhibition this year from 25 to 27 February 2019 at Sandton Convention Centre.

If last year’s show is anything to go by, Meetings Africa has solidified itself time and again as the go-to business event of the year for the African continent. Meetings Africa 2018 hosted 306 business tourism exhibitors represented by 21 African countries, with 65 of these exhibitors from outside South Africa. The show also hosted 154 business and trade media representatives from across the continent and globe, and attracted 3 000 delegates who came to seal business deals, explore African products, and forge new networks in the international meetings sphere.

Click here to continue reading in Event Issue 01.

ASSESSING ASSOCIATIONS

Are associations and secretariats of use on the African continent? Natasha Skoryk reports.

“While associations have in the past largely been a source of networking and a single voice within their respective industry sectors, today they play a far greater role in ensuring a common approach to issues that affect the broader business events industry,” says Greg McManus, the chairperson of Event Greening Forum (EGF), a non-profit organisation promoting sustainability within the business events sector, through hosting educational sessions for industry and lobbying government in an effort to implement sustainability principles into the daily operations of the events industry. “A good example of this is the way in which almost all associations in this sector have adopted the EGF sustainable event standard for the common good.”

Click here to continue reading in Event Issue 01.