$6m promo to boost Singapore exhibition, convention industry

Mumbai: Singapore's exhibition and conventionference industry has unveiled a $6-million promotional campaign designed to invigorate the hard-hit sector in the wake of the recent SARS crisis. The campaign is spearheaded by SACEOS (Singapore Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers) and is expected to reach Asia, Europe and the US.

The objective of the campaign is to attract Asian businesses to use Singapore's exhibition and conventionference industry as an international platform to network and trade. There is a need to highlight the commercial benefits of doing business through exhibitions and conventionsferences both in Singapore and in Asia as a whole.

The investment will be used to facilitate a comprehensive global promotion-campaign and a series of trade missions to key business markets in Asia, Europe and the US for the industry.

Says Dilys SACEOS president Yong Mee Hiong: "While there are indications that the Singapore economy is improving, the Asian and Singapore exhibition and conventionconference sector as a whole has the capacity to host a lot more events. We are inviting Asian businesses to continue to use our exhibitions and conventionsference sector because it is the best marketing platform for deals and ideas.

"This is particularly the case when new business opportunities are more of a challenge because of the current global economic turndown. We hope to bring a trade mission to India (Mumbai and New Delhi) for this purpose, in the next few months."

One significant activity of the campaign will be to commission a research study. This will assess international opinion regarding Singapore as a MICE (meeting, incentive travel, convention, exhibition) conference destination, and to establish whether the international business community's confidence in Singapore has returned post-SARS.