The focus for this year’s Arabian Hotel Investment Conferenc (AHIC) will be unlocking investment opportunities in the Mena region at an event which brings together more than 500 of the top hotel investment industry professionals through an interactive programme including panels, breakfast briefings and breakout sessions.
The debates will be led by a selection of industry leaders, including:
• Sheikh Mubarak Abdulla Al Mubarak Al Sabah, chairman of Action Hotels
• Saif Mohammed Al Hajeri, chairman of Abu Dhabi National Hotels
• Peter Baumgartner, chief commercial officer of Etihad Airways
• Gerald Lawless, executive chairman of Jumeirah Group
• Kurt Ritter, president and CEO of The Rezidor Hotel Group
• Mark Wynne-Smith, CEO EMEA of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels
• Sarmad Zok, CEO of Kingdom Hotel Investments
The AHIC 2010 Leadership Award will also be presented to Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, chairman of the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority and chairman of Tourism Development & Investment Company.
Jonathan Worsley, chairman of Bench Events which co-organises AHIC, said: “The consensus appears to be that the worst of the global economic crisis is over, which makes the themes being debated at AHIC 2010 more important than ever. Intelligent and targeted investment is vital for the industry as the region recovers from the downturn and the insight that will be offered by the group of speakers that will gather in Dubai in May will be invaluable for everyone involved in the industry.”
The positive outlook for the region’s hotel investment market was supported by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) ‘2009 International Tourism Results and Prospects for 2010’, released in January. The report highlighted that global international tourist arrivals for business, leisure and other purposes saw a two per cent upswing in the last quarter of 2009, with the Middle East, and Asia and Pacific leading the recovery through positive growth in both regions in the second half of 2009. The report also forecast growth of five to nine per cent for the Middle East in 2010, compared to a three to four per cent world growth forecast.
Recent figures from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) showed that Mena regional airlines grew overall passenger traffic by 11.2 per cent in 2009, and ended with growth of 19.2 per cent in December 2009 compared with December 2008. This growth was led by significant expansion by Emirates Airline and Etihad Airways, which have taken strong positions in the markets between Asia and Europe, illustrating the importance of the region as a bridge between East and West.
Peter Baumgartner, chief commercial officer of Etihad Airways, said: “Air travel plays a vital role in bringing visitors to the region and the growth in passenger numbers in 2009, despite the difficult industry conditions, is a positive sign for everyone involved in the Mena region’s hotel and tourism sectors.”
Baumgartner will be talking about ‘The impact of future airline travel patterns on hotel industry demand in Mena’ on day two of the conference.
Furthermore, the Jones Lang LaSalle Hotel Investment Outlook 2010 predicts the birth of the hotel transaction market in 2010, due to short-term financing issues for some operators but a positive long-term outlook. The report highlights that hotel supplies currently present in Mena will not be sufficient to meet demand in the longer term and once conditions improve extensive growth in tourism demand could allow for a quick absorption of current and future hotel supply.
Mark Wynne-Smith, CEO of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, EMEA, said: “We see increased regional hotel transactions as being a key trend in 2010, with strengthening interest from high-net worth individuals, such as Middle Eastern and Asian investors and sovereign wealth funds. Development activity will likely remain subdued in some markets in the short-term but we expect pick-up across the entire market in the medium and longer term. The hottest markets in North Africa will be Morocco and Egypt, whilst the Middle East markets will see developers balance out their portfolios by expanding outside the UAE.”
Wynne-Smith will be moderating the Leaders’ Panel on day two.
The event runs from May 1 to 3 at Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai, UAE, and highlights include the Leaders’ Panel, looking at global and Mena hotel investment, and further panels on successfully tapping into the regional Arab travel market, attracting the attention of today’s hotel investor and how to finance your project.
There will also be a networking reception held at the Armani Hotel, Burj Khalifa.
Day three will be the country forum giving the opportunity to learn how to invest intelligently in Oman, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Morocco and listen to those shaping the direction of tourism and hotel investment.