The Gulf Educational Supplies Show (Gess) and accompanying Gulf Education Forum are to become annual fixtures on the Dubai B2B events calendar following a tremendous inaugural airing.

Fairs & Exhibitions (F&E), the company behind the initiatives, confirmed the twin-events will now run in a 12-month cycle after highly positive exhibitor, visitor and sponsor feedback.

The initiative received a highly positive response from the UAE education minister, Dr Hanif Hassan Ali, who has confirmed the ministry’s support for the sister events for the coming three years.

“This is most definitely a scenario of the right events, in the right place at the right time,” said Virginia Kern, Chairman, F&E.

“Given the fast pace of re-engineering within the Arabian Gulf’s entire education landscape, the region can easily sustain annual events which will partner the industry going forward and assist in ensuring it meets its stakeholders’ aims of delivering world-class facilities, services and learning," she added.

More than 4,000 education professionals from 35 countries throughout the Middle East and North Africa visited the show besides ministerial delegations from Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Oman.

The education forum meanwhile had professionals queuing to attend its programme of more than 40 workshops and seminars, said an organiser.

“We have also received considerable interest from many companies who sent representatives to visit this year and test the water and who have since become convinced that this is the place to do business with the education sector,” added Kern.

The level of business attained took many by surprise with exhibitors signing up regional distributors and gaining a foothold in an emerging market.

“As a result of this show we are now expanding our business in the Middle East region for the very first time,” said Lindsay Castling of Britain’s Kit for Kids. “We will definitely exhibit next year and have reserved a stand four times the size.”

The huge potential of the Gulf market – where governments are now prioritising education in public sector blueprints – was clearly demonstrated at GESS.

“As a result of the interest we have received at the show we are now planning to open a regional office in the UAE to reach our target market,” said Romy Haddad of Lebanon’s Skoolee.-TradeArabia News Service