T he Durban ICC is hosting several major international conferences again this year These events are likely to attract more than 20 000 delegates to the large port city on the Indian Ocean For the ninth South African AIDS Conference alone it ex pects to welcome around 5 000 delegates in June In early July 1 500 child care workers will meet for their biennial conference And Africa Bio Convention at the end of August will bring together around 2 000 experts just three examples from Durban s diverse programme of events The MICE industry is an important component of the South African tourism industry points out Lindi we Rakharebe It contributes to the coun try s economic development in a wide range of sectors says the CEO of the Durban ICC For every exhibitor delegate or visitor there are positive economic spin offs for local busi nesses The centre s activities contributed 4 7 billion rand the equivalent of almost 300 million euros to South Africa s gross domes tic product in financial 2017 18 Almost 9 500 jobs were created as a result This process is by no means a one way street The MICE industry also benefits from general tourism trends be it by an associat ed expansion of infrastructure or by tourism themed events And this also applies to Dur ban Africa s Travel Indaba the continent s most important travel trade fair has just tak en place attracting around 10 000 experts The time honoured show has been held for almost four decades and is a beacon event In total Durban International Convention Centre hosts over 450 events a year They generate just under 1 4 million delegate and visitor days And the figure is rising In fi nancial 2017 18 delegate and visitor days at the Durban ICC were up 2 5 per cent The hosting of more trade shows exhibitions and larger average size of events are the main reasons for this increase claims Lindiwe Rakharebe Such a growth requires a constant effort After all the ICC Durban claims to be one of the most flexible and versatile venues in the world In order to do justice to this ambitious claim both now and in future the centre in East South Africa is constantly working on its infrastructure Starting in January Hall 1 trib une seating will undergo a refurbishment af ter two decades of service Our primary goal is to enhance our guests experience CEO Lindiwe Rakharebe explains this measure She is convinced that it will improve guests relaxation and comfort In doing so the ICC takes care to ensure that all components of the tribune seating are manufactured local ly an approach that offers two advantages at the same time boosting the local econo my while simultaneously protecting the envi ronment For 2019 Durban International Convention Centre has earmarked almost 28 million rand for investment projects www icc co za PB 60 TradeFairs Internation al 2 2019 INTERNATIONAL SOUTH AFRICA Blessing for local businesses Business is thriving at Durban International Convention Centre Durban ICC Having posted gains in the last financial year its calendar for 2019 is also very busy sich das ICC Durban selbst als eine der flexi belsten und wandlungsfähigsten Tagungs stätten in der Welt Um diesem hochgesteck ten Anspruch auch in Zukunft gerecht zu werden wird im Osten Südafrikas permanent an der Infrastruktur gearbeitet Ab Januar werden unter anderem die mittlerweile zwei Jahrzehnte alten Tribünensitze der Halle 1 aufgearbeitet Wir wollen den Erlebnisfaktor bei unseren Gästen weiter fördern begrün det CEO Lindiwe Rakharebe diese Maßnah me Sie ist überzeugt dass dadurch Entspan nung und Komfort steigen Dabei achten die Verantwortlichen streng darauf dass alle Komponenten der Tribünensitze ausschließ lich von lokalen Firmen produziert werden ein Ansatz der gleich zweierlei Vorteile mit sich bringt Dieses Vorgehen hilft einerseits der einheimischen Wirtschaft und schont gleichzeitig die Umwelt 2019 haben die Ver antwortlichen im Durban International Con vention Centre alles in allem nahezu 28 Milli onen Rand für Investitionsprojekte vorgese hen www icc co za PB Ph ot o W or ld T ra ve l A w ar d D ur ba n IC C Lindiwe Rakharebe M bei der Entgegennahme des World Travel Award 2018 Lindiwe Rakharebe M receiving the 2018 World Travel Award

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