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Well known personalities from the Greek and International Meetings Industry have been invited to honor with their presence the 5th HAPCO Conference, which will be held in Thessaloniki on the 6th & 7th March 2009 under the title «Strategies of Regional Development of Conference Tourism in Times of Depression». Representatives from Northern Greece, Board Members of the Convention Bureaus of the Balkan countries (Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria and Serbia), as well as academics, have been invited to present their opinion together with their knowledge and precious experience in view of the fact that the thematic sessions of the 5th Conference are aimed at the possibilities of regional development as well as cooperation between Greece and the other Balkan countries.
It is worth mentioning that invitations to attend the conference as a guest speaker have been sent to representatives from the:
- EFAPCO (European Federation of Associations of Professional Congress Organisers)
- Bulgarian Convention & Visitors Bureau,
- Romanian Convention Bureau,
- Istanbul Convention & Visitors Bureau,
- Kontiki Travel (PCO, Serbia),
- Prefectures of Northern Greece,
- Representatives of travel and political entities,
- Academics with a specialty in tourism subjects,
- Corporate Executives
At the same time and taking into account that the 2009 Conference will take place for the first time in Thessaloniki, HAPCO, continuing its annual awards tradition, has decided to bestow honorary awards to the Universities that are located in Northern Greece, rewarding in this way their important contribution within the academic society in attracting and organizing international congresses in our country.
In particular the following awards will be bestowed to:
- The Rector of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Prof. Anastasios Manthos
- The Rector of the University of Macedonia, Prof. Elias I. Kouskouvelis
- The Rector of the Demokritus University of Thrace, Prof. P. Konstantine Simopoulos
- The Rector of the University of Ioannina, Prof. Ioannis P. Gerothanassis
- The Rector of the University of Thessaly, Prof. Konstantinos Gourgoulianis
- The Chairman of the International Hellenic University, Prof. Costas Th. Grammenos
The Awards Ceremony will take place during the Gala Dinner, which will be held at the Polis Convention Centre, Tagarades, Thermi, (a suburb of Thessaloniki), on Friday the 6th of March 2009 at 21.00hrs. Approximately 200 guests will be invited among which official representatives of the state, Tourism and Culture entity officials, eminent professors and acknowledged personalities of the travel trade industry, journalists, as well as delegates and speakers, who will participate at the 5th HAPCO Conference. It should be reminded that the topics of the 5th Pan-Hellenic Conference will gravitate to the Strategies of Regional Development of Conference Tourism during Times of Depression, while special emphasis will be given to the possibilities of Development of a Cooperation Network within the Balkan Market from which there will be a large number of participants, both speakers and delegates.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
