Destination Baghdad Expo Moves to Turkey

Destination Baghdad Expo has been rescheduled yet again and moved, this time 155 miles from Iraq to Diyarbakir, Turkey. The event is now set for May 25-27 at the Diyarbakir Exhibition Center. The show organizer, the Iraqi-American Chamber of Commerce and Industry, had already postponed the show once, from April 5-8 to April 30-May 2, because of a March 31 U.S. Consular Service travel warning that recommended attendees stay clear of Baghdad.

According to the DBX Web site – and perhaps coming as little surprise – security concerns once again are responsible. The site claims thousands of Iraqis are expected to attend, with the Turkish Embassy in Baghdad pledging 4,000 visas for Iraqi visitors. In addition, the IACCI claims it will waive all travel fees for Iraqi attendees and even chip in on accommodation expenses for Iraqi companies and ministry officials in an effort to ensure exhibiting companies an Iraqi presence. The total cost to DBX organizers will come in at around $500,000, according to Raad Ommar, CEO of the IACCI, who said "this is the only way we can keep the integrity of the event." He expects to bus and host 4,000 attendees, many coming from northern Iraq and Turkey as well.

The decision to move the event to Turkey came grudgingly only a few days before the show's scheduled date. "When the (American forces) tell you that they will stop the planes from landing, then you listen," Ommar said. He explained that the U.S. military had worked with them from the beginning, even installing $400,000 worth of event walls that were removed when the location was changed.

In Diyarbakir, DBX will take up over 86,000 net square feet of indoor space, half of which will be contained in tents that the IACCI will build at a cost of $70,000, Ommar said. According to the DBX Web site, 350 exhibit booths holding exhibitors from 200 international and Iraqi companies are expected to participate.

Still, Ommar has not given up on Baghdad entirely, planning to hold another show there in '04. "To that end, we will offer all exhibitors a major discount in that event," Ommar said, adding that General Motors has already accepted this offer.

As for DBX participants that had already arrived in Baghdad for the April 30 show, Ommar said, "many people know what they are getting into when they want to do business in Iraq."

Andrew Walker, director of communications for another Iraqi reconstruction show, Rebuilding Iraq Expo, said his group will still hold its event in Arbil, Iraq next Oct. 4-7 despite ongoing concerns about safety. He said of the Kurdish northern region of Iraq, where Arbil is located, "Out of anywhere in Iraq, this is probably the safest area," because the United States has protected it for over a decade. Still, he admitted "a lot can happen between now and October." While Walker couldn't speculate on how many people or companies will participate in his event, the last of the previous three Rebuilding Iraq Expos held Feb. 25-26 in Washington, D.C. drew over 500 attendees from 30 countries.