Geoff Dickinson, CEO of dmg events, takes presidency of UFI, the global events industry association – the first time a UAE-based executive has been appointed
In a first for Dubai and the UAE, Geoff Dickinson, CEO of dmg events, has been voted as the Global Events Industry Association’s president for 2024, recognising Dubai and Abu Dhabi as world-class event locations.
Since 2010, Dickinson has led dmg events, based in Dubai, to become one of the top twenty worldwide exposition and conference organisers, with ten offices across the world and almost 100 events yearly.
Commenting on his appointment, Dickinson said: “I am truly honoured to serve an industry that I am so passionate about. This is the first time any event professional from the UAE has been appointed to this prestigious role and I am sure that the UAE’s status as a leading international events hub, especially having hosted the ‘world’s greatest show’ Expo 2020, was at the very least, a contributing factor.”
UFI is a global association of the world’s major tradeshow organisers, with the mission of representing, promoting, and supporting its members and the exhibition industry’s commercial interests.
The UFI president is elected for a one-year term by the UFI board of directors, and serves as the organization’s legal and official representative, chairing the executive committee, board of directors, and general assemblies.
UFI represents over 50,000 exhibition industry experts worldwide and collaborates with its 63 national and regional association members, which total 795 member organisations in 83 countries and regions.
“I will always champion the events industry, focusing on diversity, innovation, technology and sustainability,” added Dickinson.
The UAE economy relies heavily on the events industry. According to research provided by the Dubai World Trade Centre, business tourism earned $3.5 billion in 2018, accounting for 3.3 per cent of Dubai’s GDP, and over half of the 16.7 million foreign overnight visitors who stayed in Dubai in 2019 were business travellers attending events.
Globally, the event business provided almost $ 200 billion to the global economy in 2019, supporting 1.3 million employees.
As an in-person business, the sector has profited from the UAE government’s quick and effective response to the COVID-19 epidemic. Indeed, the UAE was hailed internationally for its reaction, creating one of the most successful responses in the world, as seen by one of the lowest fatality and infection rates in the world.
The DWTC and ADNEC teams worked tirelessly to ensure that all events went off without a hitch, implementing a variety of measures such as improved cleaning regimes, improved air circulation, multiple hand sanitiser stations, and temperature checks, paving the way for international events to return to the UAE once more.
“This approach laid the foundations for the UAE economy to rebound safely and quickly. Large-scale events were up and running again at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), before the end of 2020,” said Dickinson.
“Trade events are by far the most powerful sales and marketing tools for businesses to connect with existing and potential customers. In numerous surveys, 85% of the businesspeople that responded, showed an overwhelming preference for live face-to-face events compared with virtual events.
In 2021, Dickinson was appointed to the Advisory Board of Dubai International Chamber, by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. A Dubai resident for nearly 30 years, Dickinson was handed a Golden Visa in 2021.
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