Singapore is voted world’s second top convention city again; new campaign in works to solidify MICE position

Hot on the heels of being voted the world’s second top convention city for the second consecutive year by the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA), the BTMICE (Business Travel, Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions) team at STB has stepped out its efforts on a new and aggressive marketing campaign to be launched soon.

Part of efforts to further entrench awareness of Singapore as premier MICE destination, the new campaign, due to hit the streets in the second half of the year, will include direct marketing and publicity campaigns, roadshows and MICE seminars organised together with industry partners and regional offices in key markets.

The campaign launch will coincide with the announcement of a new suite of BTMICE incentive schemes. The new incentive scheme promises to support the evolving events development needs of the MICE business while enhancing the existing benefits under Make It Singapore Plus.

In the Amsterdam-based ICCA rankings, Singapore also maintained its position as Asia’s Top Convention City for the seventh time since 1995 when ICCA launched its annual global rankings.
The accolades are in recognition of the sterling growth in the number of international conferences staged in Singapore last year. Singapore hosted a total of 125 international conferences, representing an increase of 20 per cent over 2004.

Singapore’s position as the world’s second Top Convention City in 2005 is a distinction which places it alongside the top performing city, Vienna, which hosted 129 conventions, and Barcelona which clinched third spot with 116 conventions.

Said Mr Aloysius Arlando, Assistant Chief Executive (Business Travel and MICE Group), STB: “We are honoured to be ranked the number two Convention City in the World by ICCA, and to retain our top position in the Asian region. This is a strong testimony of Singapore's competitiveness as a MICE city in the global arena, and reinforces Singapore’s position as a pre-eminent BTMICE destination. This accolade would not have been possible without the close partnership between the Government and the industry to rally together to turn the Singapore Inc approach into a key success factor.”

“We are fully aware that competition is fiercely heating up and the STB is committed to working together with our industry partners to build up a robust pipeline of business events and maintain our leadership position,” he added.