Dubai 2003 Organising Committee discusses plans for local and international journalists and ensures provision of world class facilities for visiting media

Chaired by Mr. Mohammed Al Gergawi, the Organising Committee discussed wide-ranging details of the work related to all the specialist committees of Dubai 2003. It also examined details of the media and medical facilities being established plus the latest position on the communications and hospitality requirements for the event.

During the meeting committee members discussed the latest media plans for the period up until the Annual Meetings in September. These plans include new television programmes that are being created to educate and inform the local population about the event by Dubai TV, a number of meetings with local and international media and the development of educational adverts to spread the message about Dubai 2003 and the economic and promotional benefits it can bring across the Arab World.

Committee members also discussed the world-class technical facilities that are being put in place at the fully equipped international media centre that will occupy one of the exhibition halls at the Dubai World Trade Centre.

They were also told that a permanent Air Ambulance facility would be on standby at the DICC during the event to allow immediate evacuation by helicopter of medical emergencies to the nearest hospital facility.

Plans to host an exhibition of historical coins from the UAE were also debated at the meeting.

Committee members were also taken on a tour of the facilities now in place at the Dubai International Convention Centre that will be the venue for the Annual Meetings in September. The tour included visiting the new 13-storey office tower that will house the visiting staff from the Joint Secretariat of the World Bank and IMF and Dubai 2003 staff and visits to the new Novotel and Ibis Hotels that have been constructed as part of the DICC development.

The Annual Meetings of the Boards of Governors of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund were first held in Washington DC in 1946. They are hosted by an international city one year in three. The UAE and Dubai were selected because of their highly developed transportation and logistics infrastructure, growing importance as a financial hub and its established position as an oasis of opportunity.