Professional Congress Organisers from across the globe came together in Dubai for the 2017 IAPCO Annual Meeting and General Assembly. Hosted by Dubai-based IAPCO member company Meeting Minds Experts, and supported by Dubai Business Events (DBE), this landmark event celebrated the highest recorded attendance for an IAPCO Annual Meeting taking place outside of Europe, with 115 delegates from over 30 countries participating. The meeting took place from February 16-19, at Hyatt Regency Dubai Creek Heights.
Dubai is the first city in the GCC region to host the IAPCO meeting and General Assembly, now in its 48th year. The successful event was themed around ‘Leading the Future, Creating Opportunities’, and over the course of three days, industry leading lights took to the stage to discuss both the opportunities and the challenges facing the modern conference and convention industry.
The IAPCO 2017 programme was packed with inspiring and informative keynotes, lively debate sessions, a destination teamwork challenge and the Driving Excellence Awards Ceremony celebrating the achievements of IAPCO members. Of course, there were plenty of opportunities for networking, as well as treating guests to Arabia’s famous hospitality with a desert Bedouin experience and other social occasions with a local flavour.

Commenting on the meeting, Jan Tonkin, said: “This year’s annual meeting and general assembly offered a unique platform to discuss the all-important quality standards we strive to achieve globally, and to network with other like-minded partners in an environment that is more than collegial. Attendees were made privy to best practice in addition to witnessing outstanding presentations from experts who stimulated each to think differently.”