The Asian Exhibition Council (AEC), a committee of the International Association of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE), met 23 July 2007 in Shanghai. Representatives from China, India, Korea, Singapore, Thailand and the…
The Asian Exhibition Council (AEC), a committee of the International Association of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE), met 23 July 2007 in Shanghai. Representatives from China, India, Korea, Singapore, Thailand and the United States gave status reports on the state of the industry in their respective nations as well as providing insight about their goals for the near future. Representatives from Australia and New Zealand participated as observers and have been invited to join the AEC, effective at its next meeting which takes place on 9 December 2007 during Expo! Expo! IAEE`s Annual Meeting & Exhibition in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
By all accounts, the exhibitions and events industry is healthy and growing robustly throughout the reported regions. There was much discussion of IAEE`s Certified in Exhibition Management (CEM) Learning Program which is conducted throughout Asia through a network of IAEE licensees.
China recently conducted the 8th edition of its CEM Learning Program which consists of five sessions held over a one-week period in June and December each year. There were 72 students in the most recent edition and there are currently 239 CEMs in China. The astounding growth in China`s program has prompted the expansion of the curriculum. Concurrent classes with a maximum of 40 students per class will be held to accommodate the growing number of students while maintaining the high quality of each class.
Korea`s CEM Learning Program has more than quadrupled, with 19 CEM graduates and 84 students currently earning their CEM designation. Korea`s overall industry growth is best illustrated with the comparison of statistics from 1986 versus 2006 presented by its representatives. In 1986, total exhibition space topped off at 13,000 net square meters (139,931 net square feet) as opposed to 180,000 net square meters (1.94 million net square feet) in 2006. The number of exhibitors in 1986 totaled 40, versus 375 in 2006. The total number of exhibiting organizations in 1986 was 25; in 2006, exhibiting organizations totaled 150. Representatives further explained that Korea`s government subsidizes participation of many exhibitions, which has eroded the private and association events sector since it cannot compete. The government`s policy has created a space sales price war, which if unchecked, will eventually damage the industry.
India has created the first industry association called the Indian Exhibition Industry Association (IEIA). Singapore representatives reported that 259 students have participated in the CEM Learning Program since 2004. Taiwan and Thailand will be introducing the CEM Learning Program next year.
The next AEC meeting will be held 9 December 2007 during Expo! Expo! IAEE`s Annual Meeting & Exhibition in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
The AEC exists to promote effective communications among its member representatives, all of whom are leading executives of the Asian exhibition industry.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
