According to its vice-president, the Tunisia Convention Bureau will hold its second Tunisia MICE Day on January 23, 2025, participate in international trade shows, and consolidate cooperation with the administration and professional federations. The TCB is moving slowly but steadily towards achieving its objectives: such seems to be the state of mind of its vice-president, who calls for greater involvement of professionals in the running of this structure dedicated to promoting business tourism.
TOURISCOPE : How is the TCB progressing, particularly with regard to the organization of Tunisia MICE Day and the promotion of the destination abroad?
Selim Ennabli : The creation of the TCB (Tunisia Convention Bureau) generated a great deal of interest, both from the Tunisian administration and from Tunisian MICE (Meetings, Incentive, Conferences, Exhibitions) professionals. Thanks to the signing of collaboration agreements with various tourism federations, the TCB has rapidly established itself in the Tunisian tourism sector, promoting the destination and defending the interests of its members.
Organized under the patronage of the Ministry of Tourism and attended by European journalists and professionals, Tunisia MICE Day was the highlight of TCB’s first year. The Tunisia MICE Market, a trade show specializing in MICE, and the Tunisia MICE Awards, an evening dedicated to rewarding professionals, were well received by the Tunisian and foreign press, as well as by professionals. The next edition of the TMD is scheduled for January 23, 2025. For this new edition, the TCB intends to call on its usual partners, and gives its thanks to the event’s sponsors for their support.
To promote our destination abroad in the MICE segment, we need to accompany our professionals to specialized trade shows. These trade shows, such as IMEX Frankfurt and EIBTM Barcelona, provide an opportunity to learn about market trends and to promote the destination to hosted buyers.
In order to meet the considerable costs of such participation, the TCB is currently working on a joint participation with the Tunisian National Tourist Office, and on mobilizing financing from potential backers ready to support the TCB initiative.
The TCB is also working on the development of other projects, including the launch of a large-scale survey to quantify the weight of the MICE sector in Tunisia, obtaining facilitations for the responsible and sustainable use of archaeological sites by MICE professionals, and the design of a training program for staff involved in the MICE segment.
With the creation of the TCB, a first step has been taken. It is now up to the industry to mobilize and get involved, in order to ensure its long-term survival and the success of its projects, with the support of its various partners.
How is the Tunisian MICE market faring? What is your assessment of the supply and demand in this segment?
The global MICE market is booming, with strong growth expected in the coming years. This growth is coming mainly from Western Europe. The impact of this growth is only partially felt in the Tunisian MICE market. Admittedly, business hotels and specialized agencies are making progress. However, it is clear that the impact is only partially felt.
According to a survey we carried out at the beginning of the year among members of the Tunisia Convention Bureau, the majority of events involves fewer than 150 participants. To explain this phenomenon, we need to go back to the health crisis that shook up the entire events sector and spawned new trends in the market.
In 2020, the industry took a virtual turn, followed by a hybrid turn in 2022. Thanks to an adapted infrastructure, notably in hotels and convention centers, the Tunisian offer has been able to keep pace with the rise of hybrid events combining physical and virtual participation. This new trend has accentuated our positioning in the small events market.
On the other hand, telecommuting and virtual meetings have shown their limits. The lockdown created a need for teams to meet. Tunisia has proved effective in this field, offering unconventional venues and establishments, often in the open air, for team building programs and activities by the sea, in the desert or in historic sites, which stimulate the imagination and encourage deeper interaction between participants.
The Tunisian offer has been able to evolve in line with new post-health crisis trends, and strengthen its position in the small events segment. However, its market share for large-scale events has declined. European principals seem to prefer other destinations for hosting their regional and international events. Despite the country’s perceptible advantages such as geographical proximity, an attractive pricing policy and people who are open to the world, professionals are finding it hard to achieve concrete results. This trend can be partly explained by the difficult economic and financial climate, which had an impact on the business climate.
The TCB was created to support Tunisian professionals, in collaboration with the Tunisian Ministry of Tourism and the various tourism federations, with a view to hosting large-scale events in Tunisia. Facilitating access to unconventional sites, taking part in specialized foreign trade shows, increasing air services to southern Tunisia, and building modern, spacious convention centers are all actions to be undertaken jointly in order to further strengthen our competitiveness in the major events segment.