On Friday 23rd November 2018 Fáilte Ireland commended the efforts of its 1,000 strong team of Conference Ambassadors, including leading Academics and Industry Experts, who have collectively brought over 1,500 International Conferences worth €766.5m to Irish shores to date.
Irish International Freight Association was among 83 Conference Ambassadors awarded at Fáilte Ireland’s National Conference Ambassador Awards, held at Christchurch Cathedral. The recipients - from a variety of backgrounds, including Academia, Medical Science, Technology, Environment, and Culture amongst others - were nominated for an award by the Irish conference and meetings industry. Hosted by Today FM radio presenters Dermot and Dave, the event acknowledged that these Ambassadors alone had delivered a collective total of almost 68,000 International Delegates, worth €105m, to regions across the country between 2015 and 2017.
Speaking ahead of the award ceremony, Fáilte Ireland CEO, Paul Kelly emphasised:
“We know that tourism has had a record year with visitor numbers and revenue at all-time highs. The success of recent years is very much reflected in International Business tourism, which last year alone was worth €760m to the Irish economy and supported over 20,000 jobs. Each International Conference delegate that comes to Ireland is worth three times as much as the average leisure tourist, and that is why this sector is particularly important to the work that we do in Fáilte Ireland – so much so that we are increasing our investment in this sector by 12%.”
“The vast majority of International Conferences in Ireland would not have been won without our Conference Ambassadors – and the success they have had since our initiative launched nine years ago has been phenomenal. Therefore, we are recognising them not only for their significant contribution to the local economy but also for the part they have played in building Ireland’s reputation as a compelling and attractive destination to do business.”
Representing IIFA at the event were Seamus Kavanagh (IIFA Executive Officer) and Paddy Kenny (Chairman of the 2016 FIATA World Congress Local Organising Committee).
“In October 2013, Paddy and I boarded our airplanes with the task of attending the FIATA World Congress in Singapore and persuading our International Colleagues to choose Dublin as the venue for their 2016 Global Freight, Logistics and Distribution Congress,” said Seamus Kavanagh. “2013 was of course the time of The Gathering and we were keenly aware that this was an opportunity for us to play a role in this initiative for our Country.”
Successful with their bid effort, the 2016 FIATA World Congress was held in the Convention Centre Dublin 3rd – 8th October 2016. Attracting just under 700 International Visitors from 75 different Countries to Ireland, it is estimated that visiting Freight and Logistics Delegates were worth over €2 million to the Irish economy.
Fáilte Ireland report that each conference Delegate that comes to Ireland is worth approximately €1,600, almost three times as much as the average Leisure Tourist. The International Conferences delivered to Ireland in recent years were varied, from across many different disciplines. To illustrate, these included:
For further information on Fáilte Ireland’s Conference Ambassador Programme go to www.meetinireland.com
