Exhibition World Issue 1 – 2019 | Page 54

Egypt EIEC and politics largely settling in the country has also prompted interest from other international organisers, Denton explains. “A lot of the local organisers there are selling or being bought up by the big internationals,” he adds. “That’s happening all over the world but there’s been quite a lot of interest in Egypt recently. “A lot of people have been looking over the years. The Italians were looking four or five years ago, the Germans are as well. Between us and Informa we’re making very good headway and it’s an exciting part of the world.” Hall adds that, while there are still security concerns over the country from exhibitors, the issue is more of a perception than a reality, and more organisers are beginning to look closely at the region. “I think there’s going to be more competition there in the near future and we’ll see if that’s a good thing or a bad thing,” he concludes. “The more that Egypt has international activity the more it almost protects Informa’s interests. “If you’re the only show in town you could end up becoming quite vulnerable if someone comes to try and take you out and steal the market. If you’ve got a bit more of a fragmented market then you’re probably more secure.” Informa’s General Manager, Egypt, Hany Khafagy makes a couple of extra points to EW. He notes that Egypt now has “an orderly functioning foreign exchange market restored, with the exchange rate stable for almost two years. This has allowed Egypt to gain competitiveness”. And, in terms of safety, Khafagy notes that a Gallup Global Law and Order survey placed Egypt as the 16th safest out of 135 countries. “Confidence,” he says, “is also returning to Egypt as hotel reservations in 2017 totalled 84m, up 155% from 2016. Visitor numbers reached 8.3m, up from 5.4m a year earlier, with arrivals from Europe jumping 81%. “Almost all our events reported very positive growth in 2018, and the number of Egyptian manufacturers has been growing exponentially which reflects that overall the economy is heading to the right direction.” 54 Issue 1 2019 Organiser’s view hmed Ghozzi (pictured above), Chairman of ACG-ITF one the biggest trade fair organisers in Egypt: It was very obvious to us in ACG- ITF, back in 2008, that international organisers should be and will be coming shortly to the Egyptian market; you cannot neglect a 100m-plus population or the fact that the country’s positioning on the map means it can be an entry for the African continent. We had to get ready for that and that is what positioned us now as probably the only local organiser who can talk the same language of the international organisers. In early 2008, we decided to approach a few international organisers for joint ventures and that’s how it all started with Informa. We kept on building success stories one after the other with Informa. In 2016 we agreed with DMG to organise an Oil & Gas show - a sector that DMG is great at - and we both managed to produce EGYPS, which has been ranked twice as one of the most successful shows in the world. Clearly, this market is ready for International shows mainly targeting the African region. Like most markets, international organisers will need a local partner that knows everything and everyone, at least for the first 2-3 years- until they get full knowledge and insights into the country. Egypt is an excellent position to be the gateway to Africa and technology export, as well to promote investment opportunities in the African continent. With Egypt’s geographical location and the focus of the President and the Egyptian government, Egypt must and will take advantage of that to establish itself as the trading and investment hub for Africa - which is in my opinion one of the most important markets in the next period of time. With a massive need for a good venue that meets international standards, in early 2018 Egypt inaugurated a new state of the art conference and exhibition facility able to accommodate 40,000sqm of indoor space as well as a 1,700-seat conference facility. Total investment exceeded LE2.2bn (US$120m) - as stated by Wahid Atalla- VP for the new venue. Of course, challenges remain, starting with creating worldwide awareness to exhibitors and visitors, ease of visa regulations. Not a great deal of things but important at the same time. w w w.exhibitionworld.co.uk