In view of the goal of holding 1,500 MICE events in 2024, the Macao SAR government has been planning and implementing the relevant work in an orderly manner. According to the Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM), many conventions and exhibitions in 2024 are themed on “health and medical care”, “information technology”, “modern financial services”, which are in line with the “1+4” development strategy for appropriately diversified economy.
The first ordinary plenary meeting of the Committee for the Development of Conventions and Exhibitions in 2024 was held on 20 May, focusing on the planning and the deployment of Macao’s MICE sector in the second half of the year. A number of “1+4” industries themed conventions and exhibitions are expected to be held in Macao in this period, in order to leverage the intersectoral synergistic development and to cultivate the new “Industry + MICE” pattern. At the same time, IPIM and the Economic Development Bureau of the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Co-operation Zone in Hengqin will keep on participating in domestic and overseas MICE activities with the brand “MICE² Macao x Hengqin”, to jointly promote the Macao-Hengqin MICE image and the new “Multi-venue Event” pattern.
More International Courses Will Be Introduced to Strengthen the Soft Power of the MICE Industry
According to data released by the Statistics and Census Bureau in mid-May, the number of students taking the courses related to the emerging industries in 2023 had a significant increase compared with those in 2022. Among them, the number of students majoring in MICE (1,970) has recorded the most significant increase (nearly 1.9 times).
In this year, IPIM will continue to encourage and support the local MICE industry to introduce MICE training and certification courses with professional international accreditation. Since the beginning of this year, six (6) training sessions have been held, attracting more than 270 industry practitioners and people interested in the MICE industry to participate in the trainings. In addition to the courses for CEM certified exhibition managers, a number of new professional courses from the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI) and the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) will be introduced to further enhance the project management and bidding skills of the local MICE industry and to jointly enhance their capabilities of organising exhibitions and conventions.