Thessaloniki Conference Organizers Want Clear Operations Framework

Conferences and events organizers in Thessaloniki are once again calling on the government to clarify Covid-19 health protocols for MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) events and are claiming unfair treatment with regard to restrictions in effect for other multi-person gatherings.

The Thessaloniki Convention Bureau (TCB) issued a statement in response to a newly released risk-assessment map listing safety restrictions in the country’s 74 regional units depending on the degree of risk as indicated by a color-coded system.

“The restrictions in the way they are defined are in effect suspending all conferences and must therefore be accompanied by extended support of professionals in order to ensure the viability of businesses,” the TCB said in its statement.

Photo Source: @Thessaloniki Convention Bureau

According to the bureau, the latest health measures and protocols are reversing previously agreed on restrictions planned earlier this year by Greek MICE experts and government authorities.

Inundated by new measures and constantly changing restrictions which are causing confusion, conferences and events organizers are urging the government and health authorities to draw up a clear and comprehensive strategy for the resumption of MICE industry activities in the post-Covid-19 era.

“It is imperative that any measure published and regulating the operation of an entire industry and many professions involved, as in the case of the conference market, be defined in cooperation with industry stakeholders in order to prevent moves that only harm the minimum activity possible at this time,” the TCB said in a statement.