President Danese at Global Exhibitions Day 2019: “Discussion focusing on the integration of trade fairs into international industrial policy must continue”
A change of direction hallmarked by collaboration and sustainability as the driving forces for development and business. This is the challenge launched today by exponents of the national trade fair system, meeting in Rome under the auspices of AEFI for the fourth edition of Global Exhibitions Day, the world day celebrating the sector established by UFI.
President Maurizio Danese, who is also Vice President in AEFI, attended on behalf of Veronafiere. The main organisers of events in Italy discussed topics about the future of the sector with institutions. There is no doubt that a change of direction is needed towards strategic alliances and environment-friendly activities.
At the same time, a clear re-definition of the role of trade exhibition platforms within a framework on national scale is vital. “We welcome the proposal by Undersecretary Michele Geraci to create a discussion table involving MISE (Ministry for Economic Development), ICE (Italian International Trade Agency) and AEFI (national trade fair association) to work together with a view to integrating trade fairs into industrial-business policy for internationalisation,” said Danese.
This is a fundamental initiative, given the role played in Italy today by trade fairs: a tool at the service of companies which helps developed 50% of exports and the only form of international promotion for three SMEs out of four.
Otherwise, there is the genuine risk of having to compete with increasingly unequal weapons against German and French competitors benefitting from hundreds of millions of euros in public funds for infrastructure and product investments.
“The keywords for us are still integration, internationalization and aggregation but in a European context where the rules of the game must be the same for everyone,” concluded the President of Veronafiere.
Exponents of the national trade fair system, meeting in Rome at #AEFIGED2019