Moscow will host one of the largest events in the MICE industry on December 16 and 17 – Meet Global MICE Congress: BRICS Edition. It is expected that this year the business event, which has already established itself as a global platform for the interaction and cooperation of MICE industry representatives, will bring together more than 129 foreign delegates from 17 countries, including from the BRICS countries, and more than 750 professionals from Moscow and Russia. Thus, the geography of the project will cover Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belarus, Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, UAE and Uzbekistan.
In total, 13 business sessions will be held at the Moscow venue during the 2-day event, where more than 50 expert speakers from business and relevant government agencies will speak. The session participants will discuss current trends and ongoing changes in the MICE Industry as well as opportunities for further stable development using the existing and potential capabilities of the BRICS countries.
“The MICE segment is an important driver of the city’s economy, one that Moscow pays special attention to. By 2030, we plan to more than double the growth of the tourism sector, including an increase in the number of business guests – from 3.7 million in 2023 to 8 million. And the expansion of international economic ties, primarily with our closest BRICS partners, should play a major role in this,” Chairman of the Moscow City Tourism Committee Evgeny Kozlov noted.
Thus, on December 16, the plenary session “MICE Industry Through the Eyes of the Government: How to Ensure Sustainable and Predictable Development in the New Realities?” will be attended by Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation Dmitry Vakhrukov, Chairman of the Moscow City Tourism Committee Evgeny Kozlov, and Chairman of the St. Petersburg Tourism Development Committee Evgeny Pankevich. They will discuss how government agencies view the challenges facing the business tourism industry today, and possible mechanisms through which the authorities can promote the development of the industry.
Also on this day, Manuj Ralhan, General Manager of Novotel Jaipur Convention Center (India), will take part in a panel discussion on the MICE infrastructure of the future, and the representative of Egypt, George Fawzi, President & CEO of Excel Travel, will discuss creating the ideal MICE destination within the framework of a case session.
On December 17, during the plenary session MICE Industry of the Past, Present, and Future: Global Challenges and Prospects for Business, industry representatives from the UAE, India, Ethiopia and other countries, with the participation of the Chairman of the Moscow City Tourism Committee Evgeny Kozlov, will discuss challenges and prospects of the MICE industry from the business perspective and opportunities for cooperation with the government in this area. In particular, the discussion will be joined by the founder and national coordinator of the Network of Indian MICE Agents (NIMA) Gajesh Giridhar, managing director of Shanghai C&D Wanda International Travel & MICE Jeff Zhen, Michael Endale who holds the position of Country Manager Russia and CIS countries in Ethiopian Airlines, and Corporate Director of Franchising at Rotana Hotel Management Corporation Ray McShane.
The development of MICE tourism and strengthening cooperation with representatives of this industry from the BRICS countries is one of priority areas of work for the Moscow authorities and the Moscow City Tourism Committee in particular, which regularly organize and participate in relevant events. And so, at the end of June, the first BRICS tourism forum was held in Moscow, which was attended by delegations from all nine member countries of the union: Russia, Brazil, Egypt, India, Iran, China, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia and the Republic of South Africa.
