Tuesday Dec 03, 2024
Tuesday Dec 03, 2024
Monday, 15 October 2018 00:49 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
The Sri Lanka Convention Bureau (SLCB) functioning under the Ministry successfully conducted the ICCA Meeting Industry Development Forum in collaboration with the International Convention & Congress Association (ICCA) on 9 October at Hotel Taj Samudra, Colombo.
The one-day forum was attended by around 50 industry participants comprising hoteliers, professional event organisers (PCOs), destination management companies (DMCs) and government officials in MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions) tourism industry.
The ICCA is an association which specialises in international association meetings and it is a prominent organisation in the meeting industry. It is considered as ‘The global community and knowledge hub for the international association meetings industry’. ICCA represents the world’s leading suppliers in handling, transporting and accommodating international meetings and events, and now comprises 1,100 member companies and organisations in almost 100 countries worldwide. The ICCA is assisting SLCB to promote Sri Lanka as a preferred MICE destination in various terms, such as knowledge and data sharing, expertise on events, networking, educational programs, advice for bidding and promotion of member organisations, etc. The SLCB is an ICCA member organisation.
SLCB Chairman Kumar De Silva delivered the opening remarks and the forum led by two ICCA key experts, namely, Noor Ahmad Mohamad, Regional Director, Asia and Pacific, ICCA and Senthil Gopinath, Regional Director, Middle East, ICCA along with the local industry experts.
Senthil Gopinath addressed the forum on global meeting industry trends and best practices to the meeting and conferences industry and about the strategic approach of Sri Lanka and also how Sri Lanka could ready for the industry. It was envisaged that the size of the global meeting industry reached to $ 800 billion as per the ICCA statistical database.
Noor Hamid delivered a presentation on the destination competitiveness of the meeting industry highlighting the destination competitiveness from the global perspective and how Sri Lanka can learn from global competitors.
SLCB General Manager Inoshini Perera spoke about the SLCB activities and facilities available for the industry and also about the subdivisions avail for them in the meeting industry. Ziyan Ameen, President of Sri Lanka Association of Professional Conferences & Exhibition Organizers (SLAPCEO) and Deputy General Manager, Aitken Spence Travels Ltd. spoke about how industry collaboration could work for Sri Lanka to win international meetings.
The forum had covered a case study on how the industry could prepare for international bids to get more international meetings and conferences to Sri Lanka and participants had an opportunity for interaction with group work session and to prepare a bid presentation.
The SLCB as the government arm established to position Sri Lanka internationally as a venue for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions (MICE) and the ICCA forum has facilitated this objective of encouraging the development of professional skills among the different categories of persons or organisations involved in the MICE industry.
