Malaysia’s Business Events industry has welcomed 200 delegates from 22 countries at the UFI Asia-Pacific Conference 2023. Held in Kuala Lumpur, 2-3 March at the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau, the conference is supported by national convention bureau MyCEB.
The conference is forecast to generate RM2.8m (US$630,000) in estimated economic impact and is a flagship event by UFI, the global association of the exhibition industry. It is an event highly anticipated by exhibition organisers, venue operators as well as event industry associations, government bodies and many more service providers. It aims to address pertinent topics that push the segment to break boundaries and accelerate growth.
YB Dato Sri Tiong King Sing, minister of tourism, arts and culture Malaysia (MOTAC), said that UFI's presence in Malaysia held a significant meaning to the overall tourism industry of the country. He noted that as international travel was returning, "MOTAC is proactively supporting business events activities that will attract. high-yield delegates to Malaysia and also promoted our country as an international business events destination. I am excited to welcome the delegates of UFI to experience our country and recognise the great work between MyCEB and UFI."
YBhg. Dato’ Sri Dr. Abdul Khani, CEO of MyCEB commented: “As an important driver of global economic growth, the business events industry is rising at a rapid pace again. We are fortunate to have won the confidence of UFI and this conference represents their trust in us to add value to UFI’s global following.” He added that he believed the hosting of this conference would bridge the gap in strengthening the current portfolio of exhibitions in Malaysia, while securing more high-profile business events in the future through connections and recognition.
Dato’ Sri Dr. Abdul Khani also noted the 2022 signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with UFI to introduce the UFI Certified Professional (UCP) qualification in Malaysia. “Moving forward, we truly hope the overall partnership with UFI will address the exhibition industry in Malaysia in tackling the challenges faced through global sharing of key learning strategies to advance the industry.” He also said he expected Malaysia to welcome a growing number of business events this year, with more than 47 events won with an estimated 75,000 local and international arrivals.
The conference is also aiming to contribute to the socio-economic level of the country with knowledge transfer in particular. It will be shedding light on the exhibition industry’s risks and how it navigates them and on ways of overcoming the volatility of global economic pressures, the role of technologies, new opportunities and effective advocacies all from a global perspective. The conference is also expected to spur the UFI membership in Malaysia as well as the country’s ranking in the SEA region.
Kai Hattendorf, managing director of UFI said: “The time is right for us to reactivate the conferences as a face-to-face event… We are glad to have chosen Malaysia for this ‘restart’ event for the exhibition industry in Asia. Malaysia lived up to our expectations from the infrastructure, to facilities, cascading to the strong working ethics of Malaysians. These are the qualities required to realise a successful exhibition and MyCEB truly resonates with how we envisioned the industry to flourish moving forward.”
Since MyCEB’s establishment, Malaysia has successfully hosted 235 exhibitions that welcomed 2.5m visitors and generated RM5.9bn in Malaysia’s estimated economic impact. For the future, Malaysia is set to host WePACK ASEAN 2023, Food and Drinks Malaysia 2023 and Intelligent Manufacturing 2023.These events are estimated to welcome 8,800 local and international visitors and is estimated to generate RM26.6m in economic impact which will rapidly contribute to the growth of the BE industry and country’s tourism performance.
For more information on the conference, visit https://www.ufiasia.org/.
Photo: The Opening Ceremony of UFI Asia Pacific Conference 2023 officiated by YB Dato Sri Tiong King Sing, minister of tourism, arts and culture, Malaysia accompanied by YBhg. Datuk Hajah Seraya Binti Arbi - secretary general; YBhg. Dato’ Sri Dr. Abdul Khani Daud – CEO of MyCEB; Michael Duck– president of UFI and Kai Hattendorf – managing director/CEO of UFI
