Etihad to sponsor first Middle East Air Cargo & Logistics Exhibition and Conference 2014

After Middle Eastern carriers surpassed the global average of 6.1 percent growth in air freight, reporting 16.5 per cent increase in FTK in 2013, the region remains the hub for logistics activities including land, sea and air.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) commenting on the Middle East air cargo industry growth, recently said: “The growth trend is likely to continue with indicators showing record high export orders in the UAE, which bodes well for continued growth in the region’s trade volumes,” IATA stated. According to statistics released by IATA for February 2014, air freight market growth was robust in the Middle East region up 11.9 per cent year-over-year. In 2014 alone, Middle East aviation industry is expected to make a profit of nearly US$ 2.2 billion. Moreover Air cargo revenues are expected to reach nearly US$ 63 billion worldwide, which would constitute 8.4 per cent of the total industry revenue and cargo business in the Middle East is expected to remain stronger than the global average.

More than being a gateway for air traffic in the world Middle East is also a region that is fast adopting the multimodal transport systems. A senior Atkins expert Dr Ghassan Ziadat at a recent conference in Riyad, Suadi Arabia said that planning and investment in multi-modal transport infrastructure in major Middle East centres is enough to bring them close to terms with the world's most advanced cities within 15-20 years

In line with the developments and with Etihad Cargo as host sponsor, MEACL 2014 will feature global leaders in the cargo industry. Eminent speakers featured at the event will discuss the latest developments worldwide in operation and tracking technologies along with warehousing and multimodal transport services. The event will feature international exhibitors including Saudia Cargo, Turkish Cargo, Aramex, Oman Air Cargo, Siemens, Volkswagen, DB Schenker, Kuenhne+Nagel, TIACA, IATA and Modralog S.R.O etc.

The experts in the industry including Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director General, Dubai Customs and Saeed Al Qahtani, Director of Abu Dhabi Airport Customs will speak at the conference, which will also feature presentations by executives from leading firms like CEVA Logistics Middle East, Calogi, Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi and IATA. 

The two day event will be held on 9^th– 10^th April 2014 at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, Abu Dhabi. Organised by Arabian Reach FZ LLC, MEACL 2014 will bring together major players in air cargo industry including airlines, airports, shipping, land transport, freight & logistics service providers, project forwarders, warehousing & distribution and the support services providers to the global freight industry.