Medellin Emerges as a Leading Destination for Major Events

Thanks to a series of government initiatives, Medellin has attracted prominent events from around the world over the past years, showcasing the city’s impressive MICE capabilities and strengths for hosting world-class events from a variety of industry sectors, including the following:

2014: World Urban Forum, April 5 - 11
Attended by over 22,000 guests including Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz and John Dramani Mahama, president of the Republic of Ghana, the Forum examined the challenges faced by the world regarding human settlements such as rapid urbanisation and its impact on cities, communities, economies, climatic change and politics.

2015: World Tourism Organisation General Assembly, September 12 – 17
Over 1,000 delegates from 158 countries and around 3,000 visitors attended this event, widely considered the most important global meeting of senior tourism officials and high-level representatives of the private tourism sector.  ‎

2016: World Economic Forum for Latin America, June 16 -17
Medellin was selected as the host city for setting an example to the region with its achievements in social innovation, economic resilience and environmental sustainability. Over 550 delegates from 40 countries attended this two-day event at the Intercontinental Hotel, including President of Argentina Mauricio Macri and President of the Inter-American Development Bank Luis Alberto Moreno.

2017: Word of Business Ideas on Leadership (WOBI), December 5-6
This annual business forum gathered leaders from all industries seeking to develop transformative leadership qualities needed to bring positive change in their organisations. Among the 700 guests were Magnús Scheving, creator of the children's television show LazyTown and Jeison Aristizabal, the 2016 CNN Hero of the Year.

2018: The Intergovernmental science-policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), March 17 - 24
The independent intergovernmental organisation will present their comprehensive assessment reports on land degradation, biodiversity and ecosystem in the 6th annual plenary session to be attended by about 500 at the Intercontinental.

2018: Smart City Business America Congress & Expo, August 12-18
Held for the first time outside Brazil, the congress will bring together about 3,000 investors, mayors, entrepreneurs, government representatives and academics at Plaza Mayor for debates, strategic meetings and conferences related to the development of smart cities in Latin America. Medellin was chosen as the host city for its outstanding track record in innovation, digital creation and connectivity in Latin America.

As one of the world’s most innovative and resilient cities, Medellin is looking forward to hosting more major events as it strives towards transforming itself into a welcoming and inspiring destination for world-class events.

medellinconventionbureau.com