Victorian Minister for Tourism and Major Events Louise Asher yesterday announced, ahead of Business Events Week to be held 25 February to 1 March, that Melbourne has won six major conferences which will inject an estimated $12.7 million into the Victorian economy.
These international conferences will attract approximately 3550 delegates to Melbourne over the next three years and include:
- World Congress on Biosensors, 2014;
- SME Enterprise Software Technology and IT Solutions (SESTECH), 2014;
- Asia-Pacific Diabetic Limb Problems Meeting, 2014;
- Ninth International Symposium on Turbulence and Shear Flow Phenomena (TSPF-9), 2015;
- Annual Conference and Exhibition of the Asia-Pacific Professional Leaders in Education (APPLE), 2015; and
- Asia-Pacific Orthopaedic Association Congress (APOA), 2016.
Ms Asher said these conferences highlight the economic value of business events to the Victorian economy.
“The inaugural Business Events Week will give the wider community an insight into the positive impact events like these have on the economy, our local industries and Melbourne’s international profile,” Ms Asher said.
“Winning conferences such as these is extremely important to Victoria as we continue to compete against other states to attract these valuable international conferences to Melbourne, which also support Victoria’s $15.9 billion tourism industry.”
“I would like to thank the Melbourne Convention + Visitors Bureau (MCVB) for taking the lead on this initiative and helping to secure these valuable conferences,” Ms Asher said.
Chief Executive Officer of MCVB Karen Bolinger said announcing these wins for Melbourne was a great precursor to Business Events Week.
“Announcing six conference wins for Melbourne starts our busy year off in great stride,” Ms Bolinger said.
“MCVB has so much to look forward to in 2013, including the inaugural Business Events Week.
“A wide variety of events are planned for the week to showcase the value of business events to Victoria and Australia, including the 21st Asia-Pacific Incentives & Meetings Expo (AIME), and I encourage everyone to take part and learn more about this valuable industry.
“I would like to thank the Victorian Coalition Government and our industry partners for their assistance and support as we look forward to an exciting year,” Ms Bolinger said.
Chief Executive of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) Peter King said the MCEC will be the venue for five of the six conferences, with the Centre able to provide all the facilities to make the conferences a success.
“MCEC’s in-house technology team are continually developing new ways to integrate the latest technologies, and we look forward to working with the conference organisers to create a seamless conference and exhibition experience,” Mr King said.
For more information about Business Events Week please visit www.mcvb.com.au.
