$3-B windfall for RP seen from MICE market surge

MANILA, Philippines - Tourism Secretary Ace Durano sees the Philippines gaining a $3-billion windfall from the continued surge of the global market for meetings, incentive travel, conventions and exhibitions (MICE).

“While this amount ($3 billion) represents a mere one percent of the $300-billion MICE market worldwide, it is big enough to boost our annual tourism receipts and compensate for any slump in the other industry sectors or market segments,” Durano said.

Durano issued this statement as visitor arrivals from crisis-affected countries threatened to dwindle, prompting the Department of Tourism (DOT) to look for other foreign markets and sectors that could fill the gap.

He cited the MICE market as a stable source of foreign visitors because of its resiliency and year-round vigor, making it invulnerable to price fluctuations and seasonality.

Being mostly corporate and industry-driven, this market is active all year-round since MICE activities make up a necessary business and social function.

“Multinational companies, for example, can hardly do away with meetings involving their numerous executives in various countries. We can, therefore, take advantage of our country’s position as a regional headquarters of many multinational firms and serve as host to these international corporate meetings that bring in hundreds, if not thousands, of visitors from all over the world, particularly the Asia-Pacific,” Durano said.

“Moreover, the Philippines’ strategic location in the heart of Southeast Asia can also make it a preferred choice for regional corporate events, including incentive travel, conventions and exhibitions,” he added.

He said many of these events would now include marketing as their main objective, especially incentive travel, industry conventions and trade exhibitions.

“In fact, incentive travel is now a popular reward, not only to a company’s employees, but also to its dealers and even loyal consumers. Worldwide, many corporate and product promos offer foreign trips as a marketing come-on to their target markets,” he said.

Industry and professional conventions are also being used as a venue to introduce new products. These include breakthrough pharmaceutical products that are traditionally introduced to the medical profession via company-sponsored conventions in foreign countries, which form part of the marketing incentive.

On the other hand, international annual exhibitions are being held worldwide as part of various industries’ country-specific market development efforts.

All these MICE activities, according to Durano, account for at least 50 million trips taken yearly across the world, with meetings and conventions generating $280 billion, incentive travel $8.5 billion, and exhibitions more than $12.5 billion.

Records from the DOT’s marketing arm, the Philippine Convention and Visitors Corp. (PCVC), show the country hosting an average of 150 MICE events each year.

To develop the industry’s skills for the highly specialized MICE market, the DOT and the PCVC are staging the Philippine MICE Conference (MICECon) at the Subic Bay Exhibition and Convention Center on Feb. 4-7, 2010.

“MICECon 2010 will be the country’s biggest in this field as it will unify the industry’s major players in propping up the Philippine MICE sector,” said event chairman and DOT Undersecretary for Planning and Promotions Edu Jarque.

MICECon 2010, according to conference convenor Rosvi Gaetos, is supported by the Movement of Incentive Travel Executives, Philippine Association of Convention/Exhibition Organizers and Suppliers, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Philippine Airlines, Philippine Tourism Authority, the province of Cebu, Victory Liner, Islands Philippines, WOW Jeepney Tours, Clark Development Authority, Clark International Airport Corp., Coltrans, Global Link, Hotel Sales and Marketing Association, National Association of Independent Travel Agencies, Smart Communications, Travellers International Hotel Group, Annset Holidays Inc., Abacus International, Philippine International Convention Center, SMX Convention Center, Team Asia, and Travel Café Philippines.

For more information on MICECon 2010, call the MICECon Secretariat at 525-9318 local 233 or 525-6110, or visit www.dotpcvc.gov.ph.