“Melbourne is half way through its most successful two years on record in terms of international association conferences held”, said Karen Bolinger, Chief Executive Officer of the Melbourne Convention Bureau (MCB).
Ms Bolinger said that in 2013 and 2014, the number of events coming to Melbourne had risen by 37%, delegate numbers by over half and economic impact by over a third compared to 2011 and 2012. “This success is largely due to the fact that Melbourne will be the first city in the world to host three of the largest and most prestigious health-related conferences in the space of a year,” Ms Bolinger said.
“In December 2013, the 22nd World Diabetes Congress attracted more than 10,000 delegates from 140 countries and generated approximately $63 million for the state’s economy.
“In May, the city will welcome 9000 delegates for the World Congress of Cardiology, and in July, in excess of 14,000 delegates for the 20th International AIDS Conference, which will be the largest health related conference ever hosted in Australia.
“As most major international conferences are held every two years at a minimum and are on a regional rotation with hundreds of cities to choose from, it is very unlikely that any other city in the world will ever be able to emulate this feat.”
Ms Bolinger said the city was certainly living up to its status as Australasia’s Leading Meetings and Conference Destination as voted in the 2013 World Travel Awards.
