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UFI President Mary Larkin: “Exhibition Industry committed to providing meeting places around the world”

Paris, 13 February 2020: The outbreak of the Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 is impacting the global exhibitions and events industry, as events of all kinds are being postponed or cancelled.

As the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, UFI is actively working with its members around the world in responding to this situation.

UFI President Mary Larkin today issued the following statement:

“We stand in sympathy and support of everyone affected by the current COVID-19 outbreak, whether directly or indirectly.

The exhibitions and events industry exists to provide platforms for people and industries to meet, to trade, and to collaborate.

These gatherings are especially important in times of disruption. It is our obligation to maintain opportunities for people to meet wherever possible. Small and medium businesses in all industries in particular depend on exhibitions. And, like all types of events, they support the economy worldwide.

We, as representatives of the exhibitions industry, are committed to providing these much-needed meeting places around the world, wherever we can do so.

When it comes to health, we will rely on the experts in that field, from global bodies like the World Health Organization but also the national, regional, and local health authorities where we are running exhibitions and events. We will follow their advice to keep participants safe.

We confirm that we are both supportive of the markets and communities we serve, and resilient in challenging times. We are ready to demonstrate this again, and will do our part to overcome the current situation.”

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About UFI – The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry: UFI is the global trade association of the world’s tradeshow organisers and exhibition centre operators, as well as the major national and international exhibition associations, and selected partners of the exhibition industry. UFI’s main goal is to represent, promote and support the business interests of its members and the exhibition industry. UFI directly represents more than 50,000 exhibition industry employees globally, and also works closely with its 60 national and regional association members. More than 800 member organisations in 89 countries around the world are presently signed up as members. Around 1,000 international trade fairs proudly bear the UFI approved label, a quality guarantee for visitors and exhibitors alike. UFI members continue to provide the international business community with a unique marketing media aimed at developing outstanding face-to-face business opportunities.

https://www.ufi.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Mary_Larkin_Coronavirus_130220-FINAL.pdf