Under the headline "In a Semi-Locked World Due to Corona, Dubai Becomes a Destination for International Events," Al Arabiya reported that Dubai is making rapid progress in recovering from the pandemic's impact on the business events sector after easing travel restrictions at one of the world's most connected airports. The United Arab Emirates has one of the fastest vaccination programs against the virus, with over 70% of the country's population vaccinated so far.
As restrictions hinder travel to major hubs including London and Singapore, Dubai has quickly emerged as a winner in the global events industry, valued at over one trillion dollars. The emirate plans to host one of the largest gas conferences and the African Investors Summit this year, while leading cricket players are set to gather in the UAE for a popular tournament and later for the T20 Cricket World Cup.
Halal Al Marri, the director general of the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, stated that conferences and events represented 3% of Dubai's $112 billion economy in 2019. The return to normalcy will support the entertainment industry, which has been undermined by the pandemic.
Scott Livermore, chief economist at Oxford Economics Middle East in Dubai, said, "It’s an opportunity to demonstrate that Dubai is open, and if this can be done while keeping new COVID-19 infections under control - and the vaccine rollout will help with that - visitors' confidence in traveling to Dubai will be high."
However, travel restrictions in many parts of the world, including quarantine requirements after international trips in some cases, may currently affect attendance. Nevertheless, Dubai aims to record 25 million unique visits to Expo 2020, including delegations from almost every country. The postponed expo, scheduled to open in October, is expected to generate billions of dollars in revenues.
Al Marri remarked, "The events industry is a small but important segment of Dubai's economy, and it has a significant multiplier effect... There aren’t many places in the world that have such a significant focus on international business events." Approximately 41% of international travelers who attended events in Dubai since the outbreak have extended their stay, according to data from the emirate’s tourism department. Nearly 85% of those who extended their stay did so for business-related reasons.
### Multiple Events
While a previous increase in COVID-19 cases forced Dubai to impose some restrictions on hotels and hospitals, the emirate has still avoided lockdowns that have been enacted globally. Infection cases have since stabilized, and the city has already hosted multiple events since May.
The Gastech Global Gas Conference was relocated from Singapore to Dubai due to travel restrictions, while Africa Oil Week canceled its Cape Town conference in favor of the emirate. This shift is also occurring in the sports world, as the Pakistan Super League moved its matches to the UAE. The Indian Premier League, one of the most popular sporting leagues, is expected to follow suit after suspending matches due to the outbreak in India, with the Cricket World Cup scheduled to start shortly afterward.
Last week, Jim Chirico, CEO of Avaya, traveled from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, to Dubai for the company's first in-person event with clients and employees since the pandemic began. At the Ritz-Carlton hotel, about 150 people listened to discussions on how COVID-19 is changing the industry.
Nidal Abu Lateef, head of international operations at Avaya, shared, "It was truly great to feel like we are returning to normal and connecting face-to-face... Participants who traveled from across the Gulf and Egypt had to be fully vaccinated and wear masks."
### Safe and Open
The Dubai Airshow, a major event in the aviation industry, is set to return later this year. The SALT hedge fund conference hosted by Anthony Scaramucci is also set to return to Abu Dhabi, just an hour south, this year for a Middle East meeting, according to Joe Elito, the operations director at SALT.
The team confirmed that they will be finalizing appointments after receiving further public health guidance from local officials. The director general of Dubai's Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing stated that face-to-face events play an important role in boosting business, "That’s why we are committed to keeping Dubai safe and open at the same time to the world."
