EUROPE – The Central European Fair Alliance (CEFA) is targeting discussions with European Union committees as it looks to increase awareness of emerging exhibition platforms in underserved central European regions.
 
At a press conference held in Vienna on 7 February, president of CEFA and Reed Exhibitions Messe Wien CEO Matthias Limbeck (pictured), chairman of the CEFA General Assembly and of the board of directors at Messe München GmbH Klaus Dittrich, and CEFA general secretary Franz Reisbeck introduced the alliance's tasks for 2012.
 
Core issues in 2012 include cooperation with EU committees and the continued expansion of communication measures for CEFA’s members, as well as expanding membership, training and education seminars.
 
“The expertise of CEFA in the central and south-eastern European markets and the cooperation of its members has facilitated the creation of modern exhibition platforms acknowledged by the respective industries looking to integrate these regions in their business plans,” said a spokesman for the alliance.
 
CEFA is also working on a new initiative aimed at expanding bilateral cooperation to include external organisations and institutions, such as those encouraging export activity, various sector-related clusters, chambers of commerce and universities.
 
Titled the CEFA 2020 concept, the initiative sets out to enhance internal and external communication by opening discussions on important specialist issues such as activities in the Danube Basin economic region and current challenges facing the trade fair industry in the Danube/Alps/Adriatic regions.
 
The next CEFA Experts Meeting (CEM), which expands the knowledge of specialists in the member expo organisations, will be held on the 22 and 23 November 2012 at Hungexpo in Budapest, as a themed ‘European Union Danube Strategy’.
 
Discussions at the CEM will involve representatives of the EU, and cover the best approach to integrating transport and logistics shows, as well as those in environmental technology, tourism and security, into the EU Danube strategy.
 
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