SUBVENTIONS FOR CONFERENCES IN NEW EUROPE
ABOUT TATIANA
Tatiana Anisimova is an event professional with a solid executive background, having shaped her skills as Head of Events Team at PricewaterhouseCoopers Russia, Brand Manager at the National Bank TRUST and Project Manager at The Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation. Along the 10 years in the event industry, Tatiana Anisimova has participated in dozens of high-profile international meetings, both in Russia and abroad.
Q: Does your city have any strategic subvention plan for conferences?
The Moscow Convention Bureau is a state-financed organisation, so we are required to do our financial planning a year in advance at the very least. The same principle applies to subventions – depending on the number of events we have succeeded in attracting, as well as the projects currently at the bidding stage, we make an estimate of the number of events we can support.
Q: What kind of subventions does your city offer and for what kinds of events?
We tend to support science-themed events as well as those with a focus on IT, advanced technologies and entrepreneurship. Depending on the event, we can offer funds to cover the organisational costs, a sightseeing programme, travel expenses for key speakers and part of the venue rental costs. We can also provide promotional gifts, printed materials and media coverage.
Q: What is the most important aspect when applying for subventions?
The crucial factor is, of course, how relevant the event is for the city and how strongly it is supported by Moscow’s scientific community. We accept applications for support in the form of an official letter, where certain points should be covered, such as the event history, the number of participants, the benefits that the event holds for the city and the dedicated scientific community, etc.
Q: Does your city subvention offer include any free travel or reduced local transportation to and within the city, any venue for free, free reception, free brochure or marketing?
As mentioned previously, we can offer funds to cover the organisational costs, mostly when we’re dealing with universities and colleges that act both as initiators and organisers of a conference or a forum. Other forms of subvention may include financing sightseeing programmes, travel expenses for key speakers and part of a venue’s rental costs. We can also provide merchandise, printed materials and media coverage.
Q: Are subventions the latest big thing in the meeting industry or should they be considered as the very last option for a destination to win an association meeting?
When it comes to Moscow, subventions are more of a complementary factor. Moscow has a worldwide reputation for its science capital: the city is home to 1,200 scientific organisations, hundreds of colleges, universities and research centres. Moscow is where Nobel laureates work and where strategic research is carried out, which has both local and global implications. Therefore we mostly rely on the influence and reputation of the scientific organisations that bid for certain events. Besides, nowadays Moscow is an inexpensive event destination, which is why our budgets almost always mean immense profits for international associations. Of course, last but not least, we should always keep in mind Moscow’s splendid cultural heritage when settling on a congress venue. The Russian capital is a city of 250 museums, 200 parks, 182 theatres and 5,500 restaurants, all offering a vast incentive palette.
Q: Tell us something about your latest success story and subvention from your city?
Providing a sightseeing programme for delegates (Kremlin, Diamond Treasury, State Armoury), publicity support, merchandise and printed materials for:
- World Internet Project Forum 2017
- 7th IUPAC International Conference on Green Chemistry 2017
Organising a social and cultural programme and payment for the venue rental for the IASP World Conference on Science Parks and Areas of Innovation 2016.
