First Middle East Aviation and Media Summit addresses challenges of aviation sector Monday, 24 January 2011 22:59

Event organised by Air Arabia in association with CNBC Arabiya TV

Doha: The inaugural Middle East Aviation and Media Summit will be held on January 24, 2011, at the InterContinental Hotel, Dubai Festival City. The first-of-its-kind summit is organised by Air Arabia, the region’s leading low-cost airline, in association with CNBC Arabiya TV.

The Middle East Aviation and Media Summit 2011 aims to create a constructive dialogue between today’s business leaders and the region’s media community by providing a platform for insightful discussion on the current trends and challenges faced by the aviation sector. The event has a special emphasis on low-cost airlines in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

The summit comprises of panel of expert speakers, including Mr. Adel Ali, Group Chief Executive Officer, Air Arabia Group; Mr. Fouad Attar, Senior Vice President – Commercial, Middle East & North Africa, Airbus; Dr. Mahdi Mattar, Head of Research and Chief Economist at CAPM Investment; and Mr. Shukor Yousuf, Editorial Director, Singapore, Standard and Poor’s. The event will be moderated by Eithne Treanor, CNBC’s special correspondent in the Middle East.

Commenting on the Summit, Ali said: “The Middle East Aviation and Media Summit has been specifically planned to create a robust platform for dialogue and information exchange between two key stakeholder groups – the industry and media. We are confident that the discussions will yield clear insights on the challenges and opportunities for the aviation sector.”

The Summit will feature a keynote address by Ali on the Middle East aviation sector and the current economic landscape. This will be followed by interactive sessions, where the speakers will discuss industry trends, challenges and opportunities with the participating media. A white paper will be presented, based on the deliberations, at the end of the session.

“CNBC Arabiya has always been a champion of industry dialogue and we are pleased to present the region’s first aviation and media summit,” said Mohamed Borhan, Acting Chief Executive Officer, CNBC Arabiya TV. “The regional aviation sector has seen dramatic growth in the past decade. As the sector continues to become increasingly sophisticated, the Summit will provide insights into the industry’s response to the global financial challenges as well as the outlook for 2011.”

The summit will discuss the lessons to be learned from the global financial slowdown, the aviation sector’s contribution to regional economies, the challenges that hold back growth, views on privatisation, potential for industry consolidation in 2011, and other related concerns.