Over the years, QNCC - one of the most sophisticated convention and exhibition centres built to date - has played a catalytic role in spurring Qatar's economic growth, development, and business diversification

Doha, Qatar, 7 December 2015

Since its opening in 2011, the Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC) has significantly driven the needle of economic activity in Qatar, playing host to a plethora of large-scale events spanning a variety of key industries and sectors. the centre was specifically built to help further cement Qatar's path towards a knowledge-based economy, and an essential cornerstone of the nation's strategic roadmap for the future.

"Over the past four years, QNCC's overall mission has continued to reflect the very objectives outlined in the Qatar National Vision 2030 - a comprehensive framework based on four pillars: economic, social, human, and environmental development," said Ken Jamieson, General Manager, QNCC. "These guiding principles - which aim to make sustainability an overriding national imperative - have staunchly dictated QNCC success story. To date, our growth trajectory has been punctuated by a myriad of industry-firsts and unprecedented cross-sector development initiatives, all intended to help stimulate investment, and accelerate Qatar's long-term economic plan. The centre's ability to orchestrate multiple events simultaneously has also helped catapult Qatar into a major player in the international and ultra-competitive meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) market."

Designed by renowned Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, QNCC has long placed sustainability - both economic and environmental - at the core of its business ethos. The centre, which is operated by AMLAK Holding, has, since 2011, hosted a number of local and international events - ranging from conferences to exhibitions, meetings, banquet functions, gala dinners, and theatrical productions - designed to solidify Qatar's position as a global hub for sustainable finance, commerce, innovation, education, and tourism. These events include major international events including the 38th session of the World Heritage Committee, the 31st International Association of Science Parks and Areas of Innovation (IASP) World Conference, and the UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice as well as a host of regionally important events such as the Middle East Health, Safety, Environment & Sustainable Development Conference & Exhibition (MEHSES), Today, QNNC 's extensive roster of events continues to attract a high footfall - a total of over 400,000 visitors per year and serve as a powerful springboard for sector-specific growth.

The centre's ability to orchestrate multiple events simultaneously has also helped catapult Qatar into a major player in the international and ultra-competitive meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) market.

According to Qatar Tourism Authority`s statistics, since 2009, international visits to Qatar have increased by 91% with a 13.8% yearly average growth. In addition, the country received 2.8 million visitors in 2014 representing 8.2% growth over 2013.  The MICE industry have certainly played a major role in building these numbers, due to the rising number of regional and international events that were hosted in Qatar.

QNCC is proud to participate in this growth, and to further establish its position as a major contributor in promoting Qatar as an international business destination.

From an environmental perspective, QNCC has done its part to shed international light on Qatar's strong stance on climate action and steadfast commitment to standing at the forefront of environmental change. In 2012, QNCC hosted the United Nations Conference on Climate Change - which brought together a staggering 16,000 participants from 194 countries. QNCC's unwavering dedication to sustainability has garnered it vast industry recognition: in June 2015, the centre won Tarsheed's 'Best Conserving Building Award'. Over the years, the centre has enjoyed a longstanding partnership with Tarsheed, Qatar's National Programme for Conservation and Energy Efficiency.

As part of Qatar's ongoing efforts to spearhead the advancement of education and provide equal opportunities for all citizens, QNCC has been hosting the World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE) since 2011. This year's event took place in QNCC's state-of-the-art 2,300-seat theatre and saw Her Highness Sheikha Moza Bint Nasser, and the First Lady of the United States of America, Michelle Obama give keynote addresses a congregation of over 2,500 attendees, 1,000 more than attended last year's summit, QNCC. In fact, over the last four years almost 8,000 guests have attended WISE, and QNCC has so far delivered an exceptional experience for all those that attended. The event also required the most stringent levels of security to be implemented. QNCC applied these security measures with nuanced subtlety so that its guests would not be inconvenienced and could walk freely around the premises.. The summit also reinforced QNCC's status as a leading contributor to the development of Qatar's knowledge-based economy. 

Since 2011, QNCC has been instrumental in making tourism a priority sector in Qatar. Since its inception, the centre has worked hand-in-hand with the Qatar Tourism Authority to bring together the region's most popular concerts and events. QNCC's positive influence on Qatar's thriving tourism and travel industry has helped it amass a slew of awards and honours: in 2015, the centre was named 'The Middle East's Leading Exhibition and Convention Centre' by World Travel Awards, for the third consecutive time. Also this year, QNCC won the World Tourism Forum Awards' coveted 'Best Convention and Conference Venue' title. Other accolades include Middle East Event Awards' 'Best Events Venue 2013' and Business Destinations Travel Awards 2012's 'Best Congress and Convention Centre, Middle East'.

In just a few short years, QNCC has also managed to emerge as a catering giant. The centre's 5-star catering services encompass conference lunches, refreshment breaks, gala dinners, receptions, exhibition catering for visitors and exhibitors plus on-stand catering. In parallel, QNCC abides by stringent health, food safety and environment standards; the centre is both HACCP and ISO22000 certified. In a bid to support Qatar's national health and well-being objectives, QNCC set in motion its school catering services in February 2014. QNCC catering currently provides more than 7,000 daily nutritional meals to six schools in Doha.

Looking ahead, QNCC aims to continue to drive cross-sector initiatives, campaigns, and activities that help push forward Qatar's multi-phased and multifaceted national development agenda

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About QNCC
Located on Education City's 2,500-acre site, the Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC), officially opened its doors on December 4, 2011. It is one of the most sophisticated convention and exhibition centres in the world. QNCC goes beyond convention by really bringing events to life; it offers 40,000m² of exhibition space, a 4,000 seat conference hall, 2,300 seat lyric style theatre and three tiered auditoria, complemented by an additional 52 meeting rooms, all fully adaptable to accommodate a complete range events. In addition, QNCC provides high standards of cutting-edge presentation technology and wireless conference management systems. It is on the roster of preferred venues for both local and global entities as it offers the highest standards in security following global best-practice standards. QNCC has had the honour of hosting many prestigious events; including, the UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in April 2015. QNCC is recognised as one of the best convention centres in the Middle East, and has most recently been awarded the Best Conserving Building Award 2015 by Qatar general Electricity And Water Corporation through its national campaign "Tarsheed", as well as the Best Convention and Conference Venue by the World Tourism Forum Awards 2015 and Middle East's Leading Exhibition and Convention Centre by the World Travel Awards 2015.​

© Press Release 2015