Middle East Reaches Out to Rest of World

Tucked in next to Saudi Arabia and Qatar, with Iran and Kuwait also nearby, is one of the tiniest countries in the Middle East: the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Small as it is, Bahrain has a Texas-sized attitude about its place in the Middle Eastern exhibition industry.

Syria is also making a major push to attract more tradeshow business, as is the United Arab Emirates, which is enjoying, by far, the most success, as international companies flock to the wealthy Persian Gulf nation.

But even with more and more foreign investment, as well as exhibitors and attendees pouring into the countries, all three — and others in the region — also have to deal with the reality that a war is being waged in their midst. Besides basic security concerns, people have numerous misconceptions that have plagued the area since Sept. 11, 2001.

"The instability of the region is the major challenge for the growth of its international exhibitions, especially in the Northern part of the Middle East," said Karim Tabah, marketing manager for Syria-based show management firm Allied Expo, an affiliate of the Nasco Group. "Attracting international companies under such circumstances becomes more challenging, despite the existence of several trading opportunities and the encouraging economic indicators for foreign investments."

Syria, in particular, has been under scrutiny, because it shares a large portion of its Southeastern border with Iraq.

In 1998, the two-year-old Allied Expo launched its first exhibition, the Syrian Intl. Oil & Gas Exhibition, Syroil.

"The exhibition then succeeded in establishing itself as one of the leading events in the petroleum industry in the Middle East by over passing its boundaries to become an international event that is highlighting the petroleum opportunities in the Middle East," Tabah said.

Eight years later, in 2006, Syroil met criteria established by UFI — the Global Assn. of the Exhibition Industry. As a result, the show was designated as an UFI-approved event, and Allied Expo became an UFI member.

Allied Expo branched out and organized a number of other events:

• Syrmotorshow, the Syrian Intl. Motor Show
• Syrenviro, the Syrian Intl. Environment Exhibition
• Syrpower, a power-related exhibition

Besides navigating security concerns, foreigners considering investing in Syria's exhibition industry often have to overcome misconceptions, Tabah said.

"Language barrier, supporting services and the existence of knowledgeable local visitors are in some cases doubted," Tabah said. "However, international participants are in many cases surprised by the minimal importance that these factors play and (by the fact) that the gap between a leading exhibition organized in Europe, for instance, and a true international exhibition organized in the Middle East is not that high."

According to Tabah, Allied Expo is working hard to dispel the misconceptions by enrolling in leading global and regional fair trade associations. "It's helping us in showing our potential exhibitors and visitors that we are a company that is achieving the international standards of the industry and thus our exhibitions are trustworthy," he added.

For now, Allied Expo doesn't have any partnerships with foreign companies, but it is looking to grow and, if the region stabilizes, Tabah believes there would be potential for joint ventures in the real estate sector.

The Kingdom of Bahrain doesn't have the same security concerns as Syria, mainly because of the island's small size and autonomous government. As a result, it's been able to grown its exhibition industry unimpeded.

The Bahrain Exhibition & Convention Authority is a quasi-public organization operating with the support of the Ministry of Industry & Commerce of the Kingdom of Bahrain under the chairmanship of Dr. Hassan Abdulla Fakro.

"BECA is the forerunner organization with a mandate to market Bahrain as a preferred, all-year-round business destination and cultivate partnerships with key industry stakeholders, tourism affairs and the hospitality and leisure tourism industry," said Debbie Stanford-Kristiansen, BECA's director of the MICE market, destination marketing and public relations.

Bahrain's size hasn't held the convention authority back from establishing numerous joint ventures with foreign companies:

• Bahrain Intl. Motor Show is a joint venture with Messe Essen.
• Bahrain Executive Jet Interiors is a joint venture with Business Conventions Intl., a French company that organizes events for the aeronautics, space and defense industries.
• Work Boat World Middle East is a partnership with ATTA Bahrain and the Melbourne, Australia-based Baird Publications.
• The World Air Cargo Event is a partnership with U.K.-based Air Cargo Media.
• Mind, Body & Beyond Expo is a partnership with Los Angeles-based Mind, Body & Beyond.

Beyond that, BECA has also reached out to trade organizations. It is a member of not only UFI, but also the Intl. Congress & Convention Assn. and the AIPC — Intl. Assn. of Congress Centres, as well as a few others.

Like its U.S. counterparts, the convention authority also manages the Bahrain Intl. Exhibition & Convention Centre. Stanford-Kristiansen described it as "the largest, pillar-free tradeshow and exhibition centre in the country,"

"Throughout the years, the mandate of BECA has evolved such that the authority has become a key contributor to the local economy," she added. "The B-to-B events booked into BIEC for 2007 alone are estimated to generate some $19 million in economic benefits for Bahrain."

That could be just the beginning — but there are a few problems that will need to be solved before the country can realize its full potential.

Because of regional competition, Stanford-Kristiansen said, it's hard to attract and retain top talent. "There's a shortage of local, professional event organizers and skilled labor," she added.

Bahrain is also not immune to general misconceptions about the Middle East and its cultures, Stanford-Kristiansen added.

BECA is tackling the challenges head-on by launching an international awareness campaign promoting the region's modern outlook. The authority is also booking fam' trips for international MICE buyers and media.

According to Stanford-Kristiansen, a number of other initiatives to attract foreign business are in the works:

• Trade missions and international tradeshow initiatives, media relations and consumer advertising aimed at MICE markets in the U.S., Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Middle East, meant to generate business for BECA, public agencies, private sectors, and nonprofit sectors in Bahrain
• Increased focus on markets operated through Gulf Air, Bahrain's national carrier
• Cooperation with the Ministry of Industry & Commerce to foster cooperation between Bahrain's private and public sectors and establish partnerships with targeted sectors internationally, thus increasing bilateral trade
• Promotions emphasizing Bahrain as an efficient business and services hub for Gulf Coast countries and West Asia, and as a gateway to emerging economies in the Gulf Region, Middle East, Africa and the Far East

BECA has shows in a variety of sectors and is looking to grow in others such as fashion, health, construction and telecommunications. Stanford-Kristiansen called Bahrain "an open canvas" that's ready to invite the world in.

Another nearby country, the United Arab Emirates, is already thriving on the global exhibition scene. It's had an open market for a long time and has successfully attracted plenty of foreign investment.

A local company that opened its doors in the U.A.E. early on is Trans Continental Fairs Management, a tradeshow and conference organizer that operates in nearby countries as well.

"The steady growth of the U.A.E. economy, its diversification from oil revenue to other industries and the support of the U.A.E. government offered exhibition organizers excellent opportunities to develop their business by adding many more exhibitions with new profiles," said Walid. M. Saleh, managing director of TCFM.

Established in 1982, TCFM started with two shows in Abu Dhabi and grew over the years to have three offices — in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Beirut — with four events a year, three of them UFI-approved.

Undoubtedly, as one of the wealthiest countries in the Gulf Coast region, the U.A.E. has not faced the same security issues as Syria and others, but that doesn't mean it hasn't had other hurdles to jump.

"When we started our company in 1982 in Abu Dhabi, the exhibition industry was in its pluming stage," Saleh said. "The biggest challenge we faced was lack of facilities, especially fair grounds, halls and a supporting governmental authority to give, from time to time, guidance and support."

The U.A.E. also wasn't well known around the world, he added, so it needed to be promoted to the international market.

As the industry developed, another problem arose. "A challenging factor is the lack of coordination between the exhibition organizers. Because of that, there are many exhibitions under the same profile, and the dates of many are conflicting," Saleh said.

As an example, he cited five to six annual jewelry shows in the Gulf region — most scheduled at the same time of year, some within a few days of each other.

Having too little time to make travel arrangements from one event to the next "forces the exhibitors to chose one or two and leave the rest," Saleh said.

Still, the U.A.E. has conquered many of its early problems, particularly that of letting the rest of the world know it exists.

"Almost all of the countries in the region are regular participants in important international travel and tourism shows taking place around the world, and they are keen in being advertised through various other media as well," Saleh said. "The Gulf countries are offering a very competitive environment, including infrastructure and human resources. Therefore, investing in the region will be a wise decision."