Going by the buzz, the preparations and the confirmation received so far, it looks like the 12th Conventions India Conclave (CIC), which is the flagship event of ICPB, is all set to be major hit this year. Scheduled to take place in Kochi from August 29 – 31, 2019, the event is garnering much attention and interest and has a string of interesting activities lined to keep the attendees engaged. BOTT gives you more details of the event.
Priyanka Saxena Ray
As both Domestic and International but also with good profile from various segments, such as, Association Heads, Organizers of Medical and Non-Medical Conferences and for the first time ever, an encouraging response from Corporates as well.
“We have, as of now, in total 83 Domestic and 26 International and are quite hopeful of getting 100 Domestic Buyers and 30 International Buyers. The above figures are keeping in view of us being very selective in selection of buyers and we are also expecting good number of buyers from Kerala. On the Exhibition front, we are expecting a record number of Exhibitors. We already have 66 confirmed Booths and target is to get 75 Booths. We are very confident of achieving our target,” shares Chander Mansharamani, Vice Chairman, India Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB).
Detailing more on the program front, the CEO of ICCA, will be the Keynote Speaker, who will definitely give an insight regarding international convention industry and their marketing strategy. The Hon. Minister of Tourism, Kerala Govt. has also confirmed his participation and the Chief Minister of Kerala is expected to be the Chief Guest.
Since the theme of the Conclave is “Mapping the Sustainable MICE Future of India”, the focus area during the Conclave will be aimed at finding ways of making India sit in the top 10 meeting destinations in the World by 2023.
The first session of the conclave will be “Hard Talk” with Suman Billa, IAS, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism along with Ms. Rani George, Secretary Tourism, Kerala Govt. representing the upcoming MICE State Govt. The Session will be moderated by CEO of ICCA.
The other interesting Panel discussion will deliberate on how India can double the number of international meetings to be anywhere close to top ten destinations in the World. This session will also has a very different Debate format wherein there will be one Moderator and 4 Speakers (2 speakers each for and against the motion). Panelists are Mr. Vinod Zutshi, (IAS) – Former Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Mr. P. Bala Kiran (IAS) Director, Dept. of Tourism, Govt. of Kerala, Mr. Dipak Haksar, Chairman CII Tourism Council, Mr. V. J. Kurien (IAS), MD, CIAL Kochi (Awaiting Confirmation) and Moderated by Mr. Aashish Gupta, CEO, FAITH.
“In addition to the regular sessions and insightful discussion, we also have plenty of exciting activities planned during the conclave days to keep our members and attendees entertained. Thus, the conclave will be kicked-off with the Boat Race on August 29th afternoon – which is a Traditional Race using Canoe Boats which has a history from Kingship period. The other activity which is our regular feature is Green Walk / Ayurvedic discourse and Golf Tournament. We will also be opening our second State Chapter on the lines of Kolkata Chapter,” he concludes.
