SITE plans to open Dubai chapter

Dubai’s impressive world-class facilities and the inspiring efforts of the Dubai Convention Bureau (DCB) to make the emirate a most-preferred destination for incentives and meetings industry have been praised by international experts during the first-ever Middle East summit of the Society for Incentives and Travel Executives (SITE) in Dubai.

Sponsored by the DCB, the SITE Executive Summit was held at the Mina A’ Salam hotel recently and was attended by SITE board members, industry experts and representatives from local hotels and tour operators.

The DCB Director, Mr. Awadh Al Seghayer, said: “The decision of SITE to hold the summit in Dubai and explore its world-class facilities speaks volumes about the reputation and popularity that the emirate enjoys among the travel trade professionals. The SITE summit is the result of the unfaltering efforts of the DCB to tap the MICE sector in general and incentives and meetings segment in particular.”

The presence of top-ranking officials of major tourism companies at the summit has endorsed Dubai’s strong emergence as a MICE destination of choice, especially for meetings and incentive events, and the marketing and promotional agenda of DCB which operates under the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) umbrella. 

The participants were briefed about the successful hosting of the joint meetings of the World Bank and IMF in September 2003 with the attendance of thousands of representatives from 184 countries.

The SITE CEO, Ms. Brenda Anderson, said: “SITE is a 30-year-old not-for-profit organization with over 1800 members on its rolls in 82 countries. There are presently 28 SITE chapters across the world. We plan to open the Dubai chapter in cooperation with the DCB in order to offer a common platform to the industry professionals for networking and share expertise and knowledge. Dubai is a promising destination for the industry and can no longer be left out from our global network.”

Mr. Lex Granaada, Managing Partner of Granaada & Partner, The Netherlands, said: “Our company has been bringing incentive visitors to Dubai since 1994 and every visit has been different from the past given the fast-track developments of facilities.”

He disclosed that the Jaguar company of Holland would be conducting its annual meeting in Dubai soon. 

Mr. Ahmed A Baki, Area Director of Sales and Marketing, Starwood Hotels and Resorts, said: “The SITE summit provided tourism industry professionals like him insights into the incentives and meetings market and the opportunity to network. A SITE chapter would go a long way in creating opportunities for exploring further growth.”

The summit was addressed by the members of the SITE board, including President Mr. Roger Tondeur. The participants discussed latest industry trends and research programmes, competitive landscape, and marketing of destination in difficult economic climate.