New International Exhibition Programme for Riyadh

September 30th, 2010

A new programme of international trade exhibitions reflecting the modern needs of Saudi Arabia’s dynamic economy, and tailored to meet the needs of the Kingdom’s aggressive growth plans, has been announced for 2011.

Set to take place at the newly opened Riyadh International Convention and Exhibition Centre (RICEC), the exhibition themes cover: green building design, energy efficient building technologies and interiors; manufacturing machinery and plastics technology; food, hotel equipment and hospitality; mining and mining infrastructure; information and communications technology; consumer electronics; and security, fire protection and safety.

Riyadh’s new ‘state of the art’ exhibition centre, constructed and operated by the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, puts a firm focus on exhibitions as a means of introducing and transferring technology into the market.

The exhibition schedule is set against a background of spending plans of US$150 billion this year, the largest budget in the country’s history, and a US$400 billion five year investment programme designed to stimulate and broaden the economy and to support sustainable private sector expansion.

Saudi Arabia is the biggest single economy in the Middle East and provides a ready market for the world’s technology export countries looking to support the Kingdom’s economic development plans aimed at stimulating growth and modernisation across a wide range of industry sectors.

The exhibitions will bring suppliers of products, equipment, technology and expertise from around the world to interface with those implementing the Kingdom’s public and private sector development plans.

Saudi Arabian state spending doubled in the last decade, and it is predicted that it will double again in the next 10 years as the government acts to support the economy and provide the job opportunities, infrastructure and quality lifestyle for a population currently growing at 2.5 per cent a year, and expected to number close to 32 million by 2020.

The State has traditionally been seen to rely on revenue from the export of oil, and this will play a crucial role in funding the current ambitious investment programme, but development of the country’s infrastructure to expand the non-oil sector is now perceived as increasingly vital.

Central to this development are huge projects such as the US$110 billion plan for six new ‘smart’ economic cities to be created by 2010 in different areas of the Kingdom.

The exhibitions are being organised by Alagat Montgomery, a joint venture company between Alagat International of Riyadh and London based Andry Montgomery Ltd – international organisers, managers and consultants in exhibitions since 1895.