Expo Centre CEO Attends UFI Board Meeting In Istanbul

Mr. Saif Mohammed Al Midfa, CEO of Expo Centre Sharjah, took part in the UFI’s Board of Directors meeting held in Istanbul on June 15, which announced the selection of a new managing director for the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI), Paris.

Mr. Midfa, who is the Vice-Chairman of the Board and Chairman of the Middle East/African Chapter of UFI, said Mr. Kai Hattendorf, Vice-President, Digital Business & Entertainment at Messe Frankfurt, will join UFI this autumn and take over when current Managing Director Paul Woodward steps down later this year.

UFI is the prestigious association of the world’s leading tradeshow organisers and fairground owners, as well as major national and international exhibition associations, and selected partners of the exhibition industry.

“Senior executives from several countries around the world were considered for the position, which involves daily management of all UFI activities and responsibility for the teams working in its headquarters in Paris and regional offices in Hong Kong and Sharjah,” said Mr. Midfa. Expo Centre Sharjah is home to the UFI Middle East/Africa regional office since October 2013, and is a gathering point for regional and international tradeshow organisers, fairground owners, exhibition associations, and UFI partners.

The board meeting was held along with the UFI Open Seminar in Europe and a number of other committee meetings. The seminar invited key topics for discussion - marketing trends & exhibitor behaviour and how to survive the digital tsunami.

“The exhibition industry is changing fast and the gathering of global CEOs and senior industry executives was aimed at helping UFI members in addressing these changes. The seminar took a close look at how exhibition organisers are competing for clients’ marketing budgets and how we are faring against the threat of digital media” Mr. Midfa said.

Being the Chairman of the MEA Chapter of UFI, Mr. Midfa’s Istanbul visit was also aimed at presenting and discussing specific problems and ideas concerning the regional exhibitions industry, which is set to experience robust growth.

Globally, UFI represents 670 member organisations in 83 countries and more than 929 trade fairs and exhibitions organised by its members carry the UFI-approved tag.

Emirate:  Sharjah

Date: Jun 17, 2015

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