Tag Archives: Chief Executive Officer

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, …

Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) will be the latest addition to flydubai’s network from April 15. The daily flights will operate with an enroute stop in nearby Entebbe and will also be available for booking through the Emirates codeshare agreement. flydubai becomes the first UAE carrier to operate flights to Kinshasa International Airport and provide links from the UAE and the region to a new gateway in Central Africa. Ghaith Al Ghaith, Chief Executive Officer, flydubai, said, “Africa is fast emerging as one of the most important markets for the United Arab Emirates. With the proximity to the continent and rising demand to more direct links to Africa, we see this new service to Kinshasa playing an instrumental role in further supporting the growing trade and tourism flows in the coming years.” Passengers travelling to and from Kinshasa will have the option of a Business Class experience, benefitting from priority check-in service, spacious seats and a range of dining options. Passengers travelling in Economy Class will have access to comfortable seating and a convenient way to travel.

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.

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) and Huawei Consumer Business Group (CBG) have signed an MoU to unite their efforts in positioning Dubai as the destination of choice for tourists from Middle East, Africa, and China. The MoU was signed by Issam Kazim, Chief Executive Officer, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing and Gene Jiao, President, Huawei CBG, Middle East & Africa to support the strategic tie-up between DTCM and Huawei CBG. Under the terms of the MoU, Huawei will work with Dubai Tourism to create awareness of Dubai’s local culture and heritage across Middle East, Africa and China. Huawei will share information, images, videos, events information, online booking/ order services of Dubai Tourism with travellers (tourists, businessmen, residents) to provide a seamless online experience in Dubai. Kazim said, “We are fully committed to raising consideration of Dubai as the destination of choice for global travellers and constantly seek exciting opportunities to reach new audiences. This MoU with Huawei will help us achieve that goal by increasing awareness of Dubai’s key selling points including local culture and heritage, gastronomy, retail, entertainment and adventure across Middle East, Africa, and China travellers.”

More than 21,000 people visited the ‘Festival City’ located at Bahrain Bay and one of the main events held during the fourth edition of the Bahrain Festival ‘Shop Bahrain’. The Festival City was launched last week by H.E. Zayed Bin Rashid Al Zayani, Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, in the presence of H.E. Shaikh Khaled bin Humood Al Khalifa, Chief Executive Officer, Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA). ‘Shop Bahrain’ aims to offer a fun-filled schedule of entertaining activities and a chance to win valuable prizes. The 30-day celebration will run until February 10, 2018. “We are delighted to witness the success of Shop Bahrain during the first few days of its launch and we look forward to welcoming more visitors to attend events held throughout the Kingdom. The Festival City, a key event held during Shop Bahrain, aims to create a fun-filled environment for the entire family to enjoy,” said Shaikh Khaled. “The Festival City is also in line with BTEA’s strategy which aims to further develop the tourism industry in line with Economic Vision 2030,” he said. The Festival City includes a number of family-oriented activities, live performances, carnival games, valuable prizes, outdoor market, delicious food and live performances.

Emaar Hospitality Group and Rove Hotels have joined hands with Emirates Green Building Council (Emirates GBC), an independent forum aimed at conserving the environment by promoting green building practices, to secure the ‘Green Key’ certification for all its operational hotels and leisure assets in Dubai. The agreement was signed by Olivier Harnisch, Chief Executive Officer, Emaar Hospitality Group, and Saeed Al Abbar, Chairman, Emirates GBC. Harnisch said, “Across our hotels and leisure assets, we have an abiding commitment to uphold the highest standards of energy and water use efficiency as well as best environmental practices. These properties have already launched in-house green practices and have dedicated teams supporting the mission to ‘go green’ in line with the UAE Green Agenda and Dubai Plan 2021. The Green Key certification will be a crowning glory that will highlight our environmental stewardship and focus on sustainable development for a greener tourism industry.”

Majid Al Futtaim—a leading shopping mall, communities, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa and Asia—opened My City Centre Al Dhait to meet the retail needs of Ras Al Khaimah’s fastest-growing communities. Speaking at the opening, Ghaith Shocair, Chief Executive Officer – Shopping Malls, Majid Al Futtaim – Properties stated that after several surveys, the perfect location was selected and they were happy to deliver the completed project within a short span of two years. “Today we underscore Majid Al Futtaim’s commitment to delivering a unique retail experience to fast-growing communities around the region with the opening of My City Centre Al Dhait, our first shopping destination in Ras Al Khaimah and the latest addition to the growing My City Centre brand in the UAE. Among 30 retail units, seven are food and beverage focused. It is close to the beach and highway with great retail offers that can cater to tourist requirements.” The AED 68.5 million mall, which has a gross leasable area of 5,494 square metres, houses more than 30 regional and international lifestyle brands. My City Centre Al Dhait is a neighbourhood shopping and dining destination created specifically for nearby residential and commercial communities.

The Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA) recently announced the arrival of the first two cruise ships into the Kingdom, where more than 5,600 visitors were aboard the MSC and AIDA cruise lines. Additionally, a tour around the Kingdom was also organised where visitors had the chance to visit some of Bahrain’s tourist attractions. “We are happy to welcome the first two cruise ships for 2018 and are committed to providing all the facilities necessary to ensure their safe arrival into the Kingdom. We look forward to receiving more cruise ships over the next few months. This comes as part of the BTEA’s focus to revitalise the tourism sector for growth of the national economy,” said H.E. Shaikh Khaled bin Humood Al Khalifa, Chief Executive Officer, BTEA. “During the current cruise season which runs between November and May, Bahrain is expected to receive 33 cruise vessel calls and almost 80,000 visitors from prestigious cruise lines including the world-renowned Crystal Cruises,” he added. Hosting cruise ships comes as part of the BTEA’s long-term strategy to further develop the Kingdom’s tourism sector under the slogan of ‘Ours.Yours.’, which contributes towards the Kingdom’s 2030 Economic Vision.

Ascott, the world’s largest serviced residence provider, has secured two properties in Accra, Ghana. The 220-unit Ascott 1 Oxford Street Accra will open in phases from 2019, while the 40-unit Kwarleyz Residence will open in 4Q 2018. Lee Chee Koon, Chief Executive Officer, Ascott said, “We are excited to close a record year of growth for Ascott with the successful addition of Africa to Ascott’s global footprint. Ascott added 18 new cities across nine countries and secured a record of over 21,000 units in 2017. This is not only twice the increase in 2016, but also Ascott’s largest ever portfolio expansion in a single year. As these properties progressively open and stabilise, we can expect more fee income contribution to Ascott annually.

Etihad Airways is set to launch a second daily flight between Abu Dhabi and Amman, effective March 25, 2018. The double daily year-round schedule will provide greater choice to local passengers travelling between Abu Dhabi and Amman, with attractive timings of early afternoon and evening departures from the capital cities of the UAE and Jordan, respectively. The additional flights, operated by an Airbus A320 with 16 seats in Business Class and 120 in Economy, will also improve connectivity over Abu Dhabi to a wider network of destinations across Asia and the Indian Subcontinent. Peter Baumgartner, Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Airways, said, “Increasing frequency to some of our destinations globally is a focus as it ensures more travel options for guests looking for greater flexibility. With improved schedules, we are also offering attractive timings to benefit residents in the UAE and Jordan, and create even better connections over Abu Dhabi to many markets across our network.”