Interview
Dubai innovating with infrastructure for a smart new events era
EW catches up with Mahir Julfar, EVP at Dubai World Trade Centre
DWTC has undergone rapid development over the past decade; are you ready for another leap forward in what you can offer event organisers? Innovation has always been central to how we advance our venues and the services we provide to organisers. As the needs of the global business events industry continue to evolve, so too does our approach – ensuring organisers have the infrastructure, technology and operational support they need to deliver increasingly complex, high-impact events.
A clear example of this is our partnership with-45dB, a specialist in sound-reduced modular structures. By introducing flexible meeting pods and private business spaces across Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre( DICEC) and Dubai Exhibition Centre( DEC), we are expanding the range of environments organisers can offer within their events. These spaces enable confidential meetings and focused business engagement.
This partnership forms part of our broader innovation strategy, combining world-class infrastructure with a future-ready digital ecosystem. Through our partnership with Momentus Technologies, we have implemented an integrated event management platform that provides greater visibility across planning, venue management and event delivery. Complementing this is a suite of digital tools that streamline the end-to-end organiser and exhibitor journey.
As organisers’ expectations continue to develop, we will continue investing in innovations that enhance operational excellence, enable new event formats and create greater value for our customers.
Above: Mahir Julfar
How are organiser needs changing? Our portfolio has always been built on a balanced mix of DWTCowned events and partnerships with leading international organisers. Rather than seeing a significant shift towards one model or the other, we are seeing growth across both.
In 2025, DWTC’ s own portfolio, including flagship megaevents such as GITEX Global and Gulfood, accounted for around 30 % of total MICE participants across our venues. Alongside this, we continue to work with organisers, including Informa Middle East, Messe Frankfurt, INDEX Conferences and Exhibitions, and dmg events, whose events collectively attract hundreds of thousands of participants and thousands of exhibiting companies to Dubai each year.
This balanced approach enables us to deliver a dynamic, year-round calendar spanning multiple industries and international markets, while creating opportunities to attract new organisers and event formats in response to evolving market demand.
Looking ahead, the phased expansion of DEC, significantly enhances our capacity and flexibility. It enables us to accommodate more concurrent events, support larger international exhibitions and continue growing both our own portfolio and our collaborations with global organisers.
Tell us about the changing demands for live events environments and creative spaces and also how smart infrastructure at DWTC can meet these challenges. Today’ s events are far more dynamic than they were even a few years ago. Organisers are looking for environments that can support multiple experiences simultaneously, from networking and knowledge sharing to product launches, live content creation and private business meetings.
26 Issue 4 2026 www. exhibitionworld. co. uk