Category Archives: Govt

The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) has launched the Dubai International Health Tourism Forum in association with Global Healthcare Travel Forum and World Health Travel Congress at the Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai. The two-day conference from February 20-21 is in line with the vision and the strategic goal of transforming Dubai into a global destination for health tourism. It comprises interactive conference, exhibition and hosted buyer programme for hospital groups, medical travel organisations and health services companies to increase their international presence and patient network, while gaining market share in this ever-growing industry. The hosted buyer programme is organised by the World Health Tourism Congress (WHTC), an exclusive congress targeted at top level senior executives from corporate buyers and government institutions from all over the world. The event attracted 80 best qualified corporate buyers mainly from the GCC area, Africa, Europe, Asia, Russian speaking countries, and North America. The hosted buyer sessions will be dedicated to pre-arranged one-on-one meeting between global corporate buyers and solution providers.

In partnership with Meraas and Dubai Police, H.E. Li Lingbing, Consul General of the People’s Republic of China in Dubai kick-started the 2018 Dubai Spring Festival Grand Parade celebrations. Lingbing said, “The Spring Festival is of great significance to the Chinese and is the most important traditional festival in our calendar, akin to the importance of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha in the region. The city witnessed celebrations at various locations including Dubai Parks and Resorts, Al Seef, La Mer, Dubai Airport, Boxpark, The Outlet Village, Dubai Design District, The Beach and Dubai Mall.” The Spring Festival Grand Parade witnessed around 30 parading groups, consisting of over 1,000 visiting Chinese, expatriates and international friends, along with the Dubai Police band. Showcasing the arts, traditions and culture of 56 ethnic groups from 34 provinces in China, the grand parade included ethnic costumes and traditional art forms, such as Tai Chi, Peking opera, acrobatics and fairy tales. “The tremendous business potential offered by these activities has drawn worldwide attention, with a large number of Chinese people travelling abroad during the festival, bringing significant economic benefits to host cities. Last year, China witnessed 130 million people travelling abroad, an increase of 7 per cent over the previous year, of which several million travelled in the seven-day Spring Festival holiday,” said Lingbing.

The Dubai Maritime City Authority (DMCA) has completed its preparations to provide an integrated portfolio of maritime licensing services at the upcoming Dubai International Boat Show 2018, to be held from February 27 to March 3, 2018 at the Dubai Water Canal in Jumeirah. The services will be showcased at the DMCA pavilion to help facilitate maritime licensing procedures for applicants looking to manage their maritime operations in accordance with the highest standards in safety, best environmental practices, and local and international regulations. The DMCA team will showcase maritime licensing services in accordance with innovative tools that ensure compliance with marine technical standards, maritime safety regulations and local environmental requirements, in line with Dubai’s efforts to improve performance, safety, efficiency and competitiveness of the maritime sector in the emirate. Applicants may facilitate the completion of their maritime driving license tests and complete the licensing procedures of marine vessels of all kinds efficiently. Amer Ali, Executive Director, DMCA explained the importance of the maritime licensing services as an integrated regulatory framework which consolidates maritime safety, safe navigation and operational efficiency. “We look forward to demonstrate our advanced maritime licensing process through smart transformation initiatives, which is our top priority as we strive to enhance the components of the local maritime sector based on innovation, sustainability, inclusiveness and innovation,” concluded Ali.

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) is cementing the emirate’s position as one of the top destinations to celebrate Chinese New Year with 10 days of Chinese festivities happening across the city. Running from February 15-24, there will be a host of activities celebrating Chinese New Year for residents and visitors to enjoy, from traditional Chinese dining offerings to breathtaking shows including contortionist dancers, acrobat wheel and a two-time Guinness World record breaking show, as well as shopping promotions in major retail outlets. Ahmed Al Khaja, CEO, Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), an agency of Dubai Tourism, said: “China is a key source market for us and Dubai welcomes an increasing number of Chinese visitors each year. Along with our strategic partners, we’re excited to announce that this year’s celebration of Chinese New Year will be bigger and better than ever before, with an expanded line up of activities set to spread the festive cheer across the city.”

Dubai Business Events (DBE) secured a total of 212 bids throughout 2017, representing its most successful year to date, the city’s official convention bureau announced. As a result of secured bids and proposals in 2017, Dubai is set to welcome an additional 95,000 delegates, delivering an economic impact of approximately AED 715 million. Dubai submitted a total of 354 bids throughout 2017, and among the wins were those for bids submitted before 2017. At the end of the year, 104 bid submissions were still awaiting decision. The bids and proposals secured in 2017 mark an increase of 64% over 2016 when a total of 129 bids were won, further cementing the Emirate’s leading position as a global business events destination. This success also comes as DBE celebrates its 15th anniversary as Dubai’s official convention bureau. Since its establishment in 2003, DBE has been pivotal in shaping the city’s world-class business events offering. Issam Kazim, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said: “The exponential increase in bids won in 2017 is a direct reflection of Dubai’s rapid growth as a leading business hub. 2017’s success in attracting international business events builds on the steady growth the city has experienced, establishing Dubai as a destination of choice for business events from around the globe. These successes have been made possible due to the close collaboration with our stakeholders and partners, who play a crucial role in realising Dubai’s strategic objectives. International and regional business events not only contribute to the growth in overall visitor numbers to Dubai, they also play an important role in the development of our knowledge economy.” Steen Jakobsen, Director, Dubai Business Events, said, …

Organised by the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA), the Sharjah Light Festival (SLF) 2018 highlights the identity of Sharjah as a guiding light for intellectual, cultural and scientific inspiration, and boosts its position on the international tourism map. The event kick-started at the Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qassimi Centre under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammed Al Qassimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, and H.H Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed bin Sultan Al Qassimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Sharjah. The festival was launched amidst a spectacular display of light that celebrate the role of science, knowledge and culture in building generations and future pioneers. Running from February 7-17, the event is being held in 18 locations inside and outside the emirate of Sharjah. Beautiful light panels were produced using the latest technology to blend light and music, reflecting the emirate’s identity by embodying the heritage of its architectural buildings to form exquisite works of art. The exhibition also varied between history, originality and modernity, and an account of the history of the ancient emirate, with rare paintings of the Late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, on the occasion of the year of Zayed.

India retained the top spot on Dubai’s list of source markets in 2017, contributing 2.1 million visitors and becoming the first country to cross the two-million mark in a single year. The country’s performance represented a 15 per cent year-on-year increase and validated, among other factors, the success of Dubai Tourism’s ongoing collaboration with Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan in the #BeMyGuest campaign. Commenting on the annual performance, His Excellency Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General, Dubai Tourism, said, “Under the visionary leadership of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the emirate has continued to capture share of the global outbound travel market, complemented by a significant increase in tourism-driven economic contribution to the country’s GDP.” Driven by India, the South Asia region, in the third place, contributed an 18 per cent share of over 2.8 million visitors, up a strong 10.6 per cent, followed by the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and North and South-East Asia regions sharing the fourth position, each contributing close to 1.7 million visitors and independently commanding 11 per cent share, the former recording a 3.2 per cent increase and the latter, an impressive 23.6 per cent over 2016 visitation figures.

The Department of Culture and Tourism–Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) is set to launch ‘Abu Dhabi Culture’ app on February 27. The digital initiative will act as a one-stop reference point for all information relating to culture in Abu Dhabi  and will be available in three languages – Arabic, English and French. It will feature on iOS and Android and can be accessed online at abudhabiculture.ae. The initiative, planned to launch as part of UAE Innovation Month, will allow users to gain instant access to information on all aspects of cultural life and heritage in the emirate. ‘Abu Dhabi Culture’ will educate culture-seeking locals, expats and tourists on one level, at the same time as becoming a reference point for researchers and academics in search of more detailed information. “This product has been designed to maximise accessibility to Abu Dhabi’s rich cultural landscape,” said HE Saif Saeed Ghobash, Director General, DCT. “The Abu Dhabi Culture digital experience will be a truly connected hub, immersing users and inspiring them to experience our culture for themselves. The mobile app will provide a ‘360 degree experience’, a comprehensive interactive map, a personalised interface, user-generated stories as well as features which will allow travellers to plan their trip,” Ghobash said.

The Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) attended the 4th South Asia Travel and Tourism Exchange (SATTE), South Asia’s leading travel trade show, in New Delhi, India where they showcased the emirate’s best tourist  spots, popular leisure activities and unique culture and traditions. SATTE was held from January 31 to February 2, 2018 at Pragati Maidan and saw over 12,000 visitors worldwide. H.E. Khalid Jasim Al Midfa, Chairman, SCTDA, said, “India is undisputedly one of the largest key markets for the tourism and travel industry around the world. In fact, 138,000 Indian guests stayed in Sharjah hotel establishments during 2017. As the South Asian nation is one of our priority markets, this year’s SATTE is an opportunity to encourage more Indian tourists to explore Sharjah’s beauty. We also hope to utilise SATTE’s popularity to enhance the emirate’s brand in major markets worldwide as well as achieve growth in terms of the number of international tourist arrivals in the coming years.” Over the last two decades, SATTE has become the launch platform for many countries from across the globe to conduct business in and with India. SATTE has been working closely with the Ministry of Tourism, the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), and the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), among many other leading associations.

H.E. Shaikh Khaled bin Humood Al Khalifa, Chief Executive Officer, Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA), presented tourism insights for 2018 at the first Special Interest Group (SIG) organised by Bahrain British Business Forum (BBBF) in collaboration with the BTEA at Westin Bahrain City Centre. Al Khalifa said, “The BTEA is committed to supporting initiatives aimed at boosting investments in Bahrain’s tourism sector. We therefore encourage this initiative, which is in line with the BTEA’s long-term strategy to make the Kingdom a leading regional centre offering a diverse variety of tourism facilities.” The event was attended by leading business men and women in the hospitality, leisure and tourism industry and forum members who had the opportunity to learn, in detail, about the industry’s highlights for the coming year. The BBBF is a leading network of businessmen and women in Bahrain. The forum has nine Special Interest Groups covering oil, gas and energy; hospitality leisure and tourism; construction; banking and financial services; ICT; legal; organisational effectiveness; young professionals and women in business. The SIGs offer members and guests a valuable medium for exchanging industry specific ideas.