Opening of new African regional office acknowledges development of the international association meetings market in the African region.
Ms. Chris Prieto, CMP, is the new South African based Regional Director covering the African region. She brings a wealth of experience in operations, frontline sales and marketing, and in-depth knowledge of the meetings industry in Africa.
After the first months of intensive training on ICCA’s products and services, Chris is looking forward to her first edition of Meetings Africa as an ICCA representative:
Chris Prieto: “My top priority is to make sure that every member in Africa knows that they’ve now got a friendly African point of contact to help them get the maximum value out of their ICCA membership, to make them aware of how to use the ICCA network, the database, and the full range of ICCA services.”
ICCA President Arnaldo Nardone stated: “The opening of the new regional offices in Africa isn’t simply a move to deliver better services to our existing members in this region, but a recognition that the international association meetings market is continuing to evolve, and it is in the growth of regional meetings that we anticipate some of the most dramatic future developments.
This trend is already well established in Asia and Latin America and the recent establishment of an African society for association executives shows that Africa is starting to move down the same road. What this implies is that there is going to be more business for our existing members in these regions, more new events to identify and add to the ICCA Association Database, more new infrastructure developments, more understanding of the strategic importance of association events by city and national governments, and more interest in ICCA by potential new members. It is strategically important for ICCA to build a long-term presence in the African market.”
ICCA now has five regional offices in addition to its Head Office in Amsterdam, with established operations already serving Asia-Pacific, North- and Latin America, and new regional offices in the Middle East and Africa.
