Hosea Andreas Runkat, a familiar face to business event players in Indonesia, has been elected as chairperson of Indonesian Exhibition Companies Association (IECA) for the 2019-2022 period, replacing Effi Setiabudi.
The election, which took place in Jakarta last month, marked several changes within the organisation, as it aims to become more dynamic to meet the expectations of today’s exhibition industry.
Also the director of Convention Services at Jakarta Convention Center, Andreas is the first chairman who is not a owner of an exhibition organising company, and the first non-exhibition organiser.
Andreas revealed that during this year’s election, the board agreed to update the association’s bylaw, thereby allowing professionals to be candidates who can be organisers, venues and vendors.
He added that as organisers were not the only party that make an exhibition, and venues and vendors were needed, so therefore, they should also be given roles within organisations like IECA.
Now at the helm of the association, Andreas wants to reposition IECA into becoming a more “reputable and profession organisation”.
“I would also like to invite the younger generation of industry players to participate, as well as lobby the big players to be participate actively in ICEA. This is not just an association for small players, but all exhibition players in the country,” he said.
When asked about his future plans, Andreas said he wanted to focus on developing human resources to improve the competitiveness of Indonesia’s exhibition industry. In this aspect, both Andreas and his team will work with universities to conduct training, short courses and certification for members.
Andreas also plans to enhance the IECA partnership with the government, acknowledging that government support is important.
He elaborated: “It is undeniable that the government plays an important role in this industry, both to help with licensing or promotional issue, and other funding support. I will try to get IECA closer to the Ministry of Tourism.”
Other plans include building partnerships with Association of the German Trade Fair Industry, as he is “determined to bring more international tradeshows to Indonesia”.
