Briefing at airport for Dubai 2003 hospitality team

These volunteers will be assigned to meet and greet incoming delegates and participants, and need to be familiar with the facilities at the airport and further arrangements made for the delegate. This training was led by the head of the Committee, Mr. Obaid Salem Al Shamsi.

Mr. Al Shamsi said, "The volunteers are going to be among the first people that a visitor to Dubai for the meetings is going to interact with. Their grasp on the facilities, accommodation and transport arrangements for the delegates should be current and accurate. Some of the VVIPs will be received right at the aircraft, and the volunteers also need to know how to conduct themselves with heads of state, central ministers and others."

The task force of around 1200 volunteers have been divided into four teams, for hospitality at the airport, at hotels and at the DICC, as well as one team for delegates' transport. These youngsters, mostly students, have been selected to represent the UAE with all its hospitality and rich culture. They will serve as a point of contact for all delegates, and are currently being trained extensively to conduct themselves efficiently as ambassadors of the UAE.

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.