MICE CENTRAL & EASTERN EUROPE

DUBAI WORLD TRADE CENTRE WELCOMES 1.98 MILLION VISITORS AS THE REGION’S EPICENTER FOR BUSINESS AND TRADE RETURNS TO FORM

DWTC’s own industry-leading exhibitions deliver 20% visitor growth, driven by Gulfood and GITEX Global

Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), the regional epicenter of trade and business has announced 2022 annual results with strong performances across its businesses.

Home to an iconic portfolio of influential business and trade events, DWTC hosted 1.98 million delegates with a robust visitation growth of 29%. The results were driven by 244 MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions), business and consumer events. Of these, 97 Exhibitions and Conferences attracted 1.18 million attendees of which 38% were from overseas, reflecting Dubai’s position as the destination of choice for business and tourism. 

H.E. Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General of Dubai World Trade Centre Authority, said: “DWTC’s 2022 results are an unequivocal endorsement of the emirate’s efforts in driving post-pandemic economic recovery and leveraging opportunity, delivered through strategic collaborative stakeholder commitment, across all sectors of the economy. An unprecedented year for the MICE industry, 2022 underlined Dubai’s leadership, with its dynamic events sector, an acknowledged global platform for impactful knowledge sharing, effective networking and game-changing innovation. We will build on this momentum by reinforcing Dubai’s position as the capital of the MICE industry, and continue our contribution towards achieving Dubai Economic Agenda D33 goals.”

DWTC’s own portfolio of exhibitions and events, which includes flagship events GITEX Global and Gulfood, attracted 337,000 visitors, registering 20% annual growth while the combined portfolio of events attracted twelve thousand exhibiting companies, an impressive increase of 35%.

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EXPO 2020 DUBAI PROJECTED TO ADD US$42.2 BILLION TO UAE ECONOMY

Legacy lives on from event, which is also set to have supported more than 1 million job-years from 2013-2042, according to an EY report

Expo 2020 Dubai and its legacy are expected to contribute AED 154.9 billion (US $42.2 billion) of gross value added (GVA) to the UAE’s economy from 2013 to 2042, a report from EY has shown. The World Expo, which welcomed 24.1 million visits during its six-month run, is also expected to support approximately 1,039,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) job-years, equal to more than 35,000 FTE jobs per annum in the UAE over the same period.

The sectors contributing most to GVA – a measure of economic productivity – are events organisation and business services (AED 75.5 billion/US $20.6 billion), construction (AED 31.9 billion/US $8.7 billion), and restaurants and hotels (AED 23.1 billion/US $6.3 billion). The pre-event phase contributed around one quarter of GVA, the event itself added almost 13 per cent, while the lion’s share of economic benefits – 62 percent – will be felt in the legacy phase through to 2042.

Legacy considerations were at the forefront of planning from the outset, and Expo City Dubai repurposes more than 80 per cent of the infrastructure built for the six months of the event. It forms an integral part of the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan and the emirate’s continued growth, and takes forward Expo 2020 Dubai’s spirit of collective action through the ongoing delivery of programmes, initiatives and events that will draw visitors, businesses and tenants to add further impact and economic value.

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DUBAI’S DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMY AND TOURISM RELAUNCHES DUBAI CARBON CALCULATOR

Improvements part of the Dubai Sustainable Tourism (DST) initiative that seeks to contribute to the broader clean energy targets and support the UAE Net Zero by 2050 Strategy

Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) has announced the relaunch of the pioneering Carbon Calculator tool that measures the carbon footprint within Dubai’s hospitality sector. The tool has now been revamped to track real-time data for carbon emission sources, allowing hotels to identify and effectively manage their energy consumption.

The improvements are part of the Dubai Sustainable Tourism (DST) initiative that seeks to contribute to the broader clean energy targets and support the UAE Net Zero by 2050 Strategy, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) 2030. The initiative also supports the goals of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, to consolidate Dubai’s status as one of the top three global cities and enhance its position as one of the world’s leading sustainable tourism destinations. 

Since its inception in January 2017, Dubai Sustainable Tourism’s Carbon Calculator, part of the Tourism Dirham Platform, has been measuring the carbon footprint of hotels across Dubai. On a monthly basis, hotels are mandated to submit their consumption of nine carbon emission sources, including: electricity, water, district cooling, liquefied petroleum gas, landfill waste, recycled waste, petrol, diesel and refrigerants. This information is aggregated and analyzed to provide valuable industry insights on the sector’s collective carbon footprint. In addition, by formulating a baseline along with consistent tracking, this information enables hotels to understand their energy, water and waste consumption and further identify successful cost-saving opportunities. 

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EMIRATES AND UNITED ACTIVATE CODESHARE PARTNERSHIP TO ENHANCE CONNECTIVITY TO THE US

Emirates customers to have access to more than 150 US cities through Chicago, Houston and San Francisco while enjoying codeshare benefits for flights on United

Emirates and United have activated their codeshare partnership, allowing Emirates customers to enjoy easier access to an expanded choice of U.S. destinations. Starting today, Emirates customers will be able to fly to three of the nation’s biggest business hubs – Chicago, Houston or San Francisco – and connect easily to an expansive network of domestic U.S. points on flights operated by United.

With the launch of the partnership, Emirates customers heading to the U.S., can now look forward to access to more than 150 U.S. cities in the United network, via the three gateways.

Similarly, Emirates customers in the U.S. planning trips to Dubai and beyond have a myriad of choices and can utilise United’s services to easily connect to Emirates operated flights bound for Dubai, via Chicago, Houston or San Francisco. The world just got bigger for U.S. travelers journeying to Emirates’ extensive network beyond Dubai, including many unique destinations across the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent.

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DXB IS WORLD’S BUSIEST INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AGAIN

Dubai International handled over 66 million international passengers in 2022, up 127% year-on-year

Dubai International (DXB) has retained its position as the world’s busiest international airport for the 9th consecutive year, as announced by the Airports Council International (ACI), after handling over 66 million international passengers in 2022, up 127% year-on-year

Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports, said: “We are obviously quite thrilled to top the list of the world’s busiest international airports for the ninth consecutive year, but it comes as no surprise given Dubai International’s (DXB) stellar performance throughout 2022 and the upsurge in traffic in the final quarter. The increase in demand for air travel was universal in 2022, but what set DXB apart was the dedication of our people and the meticulous planning and preparation by each and every service partner that makes up Dubai’s amazing airport community.

“Our preparedness backed by collaboration enabled us to not just accommodate the rapid increase in demand but also deliver tangible enhancement in service quality and overall airport experience for the 66 million passengers that passed through DXB during the year. As we celebrate this achievement, our focus remains on continuing to work on keeping DXB on top of the list of the busiest hubs but also having it acknowledged by travelers globally as delivering the best airport experience in the world.“