Conference organisers in the UAE are scrambling to decide the fate of business events scheduled for Egypt. Several conventions and conferences have already been postponed and a dozen more events may not take place .
"For now, we're waiting," said Melody Fahima, the marketing manager for IQPC, the conference company.
Ms Fahima is working on two conferences planned for Cairo, including the Banking Technology Summit scheduled for March 6-9. "Right now our response is that the event is happening," she said.
The turmoil in Egypt is creating a complicated dilemma for event planners. Cairo is a popular meeting spot, with a full roster of events on the calendar.
Planners are reluctant to postpone or cancel a show unless absolutely necessary. Dozens of companies from around the world are making plans based on times that have been agreed and large budgets are at stake.
But the continued strife in Egypt is leaving planners in limbo.
"It was a bit tense for the first few days," said Martin Valovsky, the general manager of Fleming Gulf.
Fleming has postponed two events in Cairo, the three-day Mena Gas Distribution Summit that was scheduled to start on Monday and the Mena Oncology Conference planned for March 11 and 12.
"In a case like this, we think about the delegates and speakers and we are responsible for their safety," Mr Valovsky said.
Switching conferences to Jordan would be the "logical choice", but the long-term situation in Jordan is also unclear, Mr Valovsky added.
The event organiser IIR Middle East, which is based in Dubai, is planning Cityscape Egypt, a property convention, for the Cairo International Convention & Exhibition Centre, to run from April 27-30.
"We're still hoping the event will go forward as planned," said Rohan Marwaha, the managing director of Cityscape. "We hope and believe this won't drag on."
Egypt's problems are also sending ripples into events planned for the UAE.
"It's tough," said Raynor Colkers, the project manager for International Conferences and Exhibitions, whose company is organising the Gulf Education and Training Exhibition scheduled for April 14-16 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre. Several Egyptian companies are scheduled to participate.
"The problem we face is getting in touch with companies," Mr Colkers said. "We're not sure if they can participate at this point."
The UAE could stand to benefit from shows planned for Egypt that may now be looking for a new home.
No large conventions have switched to the UAE yet, according to representatives of the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Centre and Dubai World Trade Centre. Many of the shows scheduled for Egypt have direct ties to the country, making it difficult to shift to a new location, event organisers said.
But Fleming Gulf is considering Dubai as a possible new location for the oncology conference and other events may follow.
Cemtech, the international cement conference originally planned for Cairo, has been moved to the Grand Hyatt in Dubai from March 5-8.
"We were getting a lot of e-mails from delegates," said David Hargreaves, the managing director of International Cement Review, the event organiser.
The show, which usually attracts an attendance of about 250, is usually held in Dubai. But this year the company decided to switch to Cairo for a change of pace.
Ultimately, it became an easy decision to move the conference back to Dubai, Mr Hargreaves said.
"Who knows what will happen in the next three weeks," he said. "We thought, let's play it safe."
kbrass@thenational.ae
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Cargoz%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDate%20started%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Premlal%20Pullisserry%20and%20Lijo%20Antony%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2030%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Seed%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Tentative schedule of 2017/18 Ashes series
1st Test November 23-27, The Gabba, Brisbane
2nd Test December 2-6, Adelaide Oval, Adelaide
3rd Test Dcember 14-18, Waca, Perth
4th Test December 26-30, Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
5th Test January 4-8, Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney
Disturbing%20facts%20and%20figures
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E51%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20of%20parents%20in%20the%20UAE%20feel%20like%20they%20are%20failing%20within%20the%20first%20year%20of%20parenthood%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E57%25%20vs%2043%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20is%20the%20number%20of%20mothers%20versus%20the%20number%20of%20fathers%20who%20feel%20they%E2%80%99re%20failing%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E28%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20of%20parents%20believe%20social%20media%20adds%20to%20the%20pressure%20they%20feel%20to%20be%20perfect%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E55%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20of%20parents%20cannot%20relate%20to%20parenting%20images%20on%20social%20media%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E67%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20of%20parents%20wish%20there%20were%20more%20honest%20representations%20of%20parenting%20on%20social%20media%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E53%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20of%20parents%20admit%20they%20put%20on%20a%20brave%20face%20rather%20than%20being%20honest%20due%20to%20fear%20of%20judgment%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cspan%20style%3D%22font-size%3A%2014px%3B%22%3ESource%3A%20YouGov%3C%2Fspan%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Eco%20Way%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20December%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ivan%20Kroshnyi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Electric%20vehicles%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Bootstrapped%20with%20undisclosed%20funding.%20Looking%20to%20raise%20funds%20from%20outside%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5