Over two days, the conversations moved far beyond operational models or membership growth. Delegates explored how associations can become engines of transformation – shaping industries, influencing policy, and creating legacies that extend well beyond their events.

As His Excellency Helal Saeed Almarri, Director-General of the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism and Dubai World Trade Centre Authority, said: “Through the Dubai Association Centre Conference, the city has consistently demonstrated a commitment to not only developing a vibrant association community here, but also offering a platform to navigate change and forge new paths for the sector globally.”

For Dubai, this dialogue actually reflected a vision the city has pursued for more than a decade: to make associations not just visitors or clients, but strategic partners in its economic and social development.

A Home for Global Associations

Established in 2014, the Dubai Association Centre (DAC) embodies this philosophy. A joint initiative of Dubai Chambers, the Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), and the Dubai World Trade Centre Authority (DWTCA), DAC was designed as a one-stop platform to help international associations establish a presence in the region.

Today, nearly 100 associations operate under its umbrella, spanning sectors from healthcare and hospitality to energy, manufacturing, and education. DAC provides them not just with office space at One Central, but with a community of practice, a place where organisations can share resources, access professional support, and connect with regional partners.

The model is simple but powerful: DAC takes care of the licensing and legal structure, while associations retain full autonomy in governance and membership decisions. This enables international organisations to operate locally with confidence, compliance, and credibility – an essential combination in a rapidly evolving global environment.

Built on Vision

A series of long-term policy frameworks support Dubai’s association ecosystem. D33 aims to position Dubai among the top three global urban economies and raise private-sector investment to AED 1 trillion by 2033. The Education 33 Strategy focuses on quality learning at every stage, building the talent pipeline that fuels innovation.

City-wide initiatives, such as the AI Roadmap, the Quality of Life Strategy 2033, and the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan, align sustainability, innovation, and inclusivity goals across sectors. For associations, this creates opportunities to integrate local expertise into programmes and leave lasting legacies through research, community engagement, capacity building, and environmental stewardship.

Through these strategies, Dubai demonstrates that associations are central to its global ambitions, as they help shape policy and sustain the emirate’s knowledge economy.

Empowering Advocacy: The Al Safeer Congress Ambassador Programme

A linchpin of Dubai Business Events’ strategy – the Al Safeer Congress Ambassador Programme, mobilises UAE-based leaders from government, academia, industry, and key sectors to champion international congresses in Dubai. Since its launch, the programme has become one of the region’s most effective tools for turning local expertise into global events.

Ambassadors actively champion bidding and hosting efforts by aligning proposed events with national and sector priorities. They leverage their networks and subject-matter credibility to shape event narratives, content, partnerships, and legacy programmes. By mid-2025, the programme had grown to more than 370 ambassadors, who collectively drove 51 ambassador-led bids in the first half of the year alone.

The Al Safeer programme has become essential to Dubai’s ability to attract international events. Senior ambassadors from healthcare, education, and technology sectors highlight how it connects Dubai’s brightest minds to the global stage, uniting local expertise with international opportunities.

Winning Through Partnership

In 2025, Dubai Business Events received the Association Development Award at the ICCA Middle East Summit. The award cited Al Safeer as a distinguishing factor in Dubai’s amplified global events pipeline. It recognised the Dubai Association Centre as the only initiative at this level in the Gulf region.

The first half of 2025 brought strong results, with 249 successful bids confirmed across 2025 to 2029, representing 127,087 delegates and a 29% increase in bid submissions compared to the same period in 2024. Of these, 51 were ambassador-led bids, and 32 have already been won. These figures demonstrate how Al Safeer transforms local credibility into international conferences, creating a bridge between Dubai’s expertise and the global association community.

But winning a bid is just the beginning for associations.  By partnering with Al Safeer ambassadors, the real value lies in deep local integration, with access to institutional, regulatory, and sectoral insiders who understand how Dubai works. Ambassador endorsement brings credibility and relevance within local, regional, and sector ecosystems, helping associations connect with the right partners and stakeholders.

More importantly, ambassadors help embed meaningful programmes into event outcomes. This includes research collaborations, capacity-building initiatives, and sustainable projects that create lasting impact. As the network continues to grow across verticals like healthcare, sustainability, and technology, Al Safeer strengthens Dubai’s appeal for cross-disciplinary associations that want to make a mark.

Al Safeer represents a distinctive approach in a crowded field. It turns destination marketing into a genuine partnership, making every bid win the start of something bigger.

That same collaborative spirit extends beyond associations to the city’s wider knowledge and innovation ecosystem, where academia, industry, and government connect to transform ideas into real-world solutions.

More information on how Dubai can help you organise an impactful congress on visitdubai.com