ICCA’s latest GlobeWatch Business Analytics – Country & City Rankings for 2024 has identified Japan as the top-ranked country in Asia-Pacific while Singapore holds first position among cities.
The top five countries in Asia-Pacific, in descending order, are Japan with 428 meetings, China (249 meetings), South Korea (243 meetings), Australia (227 meetings), and Thailand (158 meetings).
The region is also becoming increasingly competitive, noted ICCA, with 13 countries now ranked among the global top 50, just behind Europe.
At the city level in Asia-Pacific, Singapore claims top spot with 144 meetings, followed by Seoul (124 meetings), Bangkok (115 meetings), Tokyo (97 meetings), and Hong Kong (86 meetings).
There has been a significant rise in association meetings in the region, as countries/territories like China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Macau and Sri Lanka have all shown growth relative to previous years.
At the global country level, the US maintains top position, followed by Italy, Spain, Germany, and the UK.
Latin America and the Middle East continue to demonstrate rising influence as emerging regions. From 2022 to 2024, they were the only regions to show consistent year-over-year growth in the number of meetings recorded.
Meanwhile, there is growing government interest across Africa in strengthening infrastructure and capacity for international meetings, signalling potential for accelerated growth in the years ahead.
While large, city-wide congresses still draw attention, ICCA’s 2024 data confirms that most international association meetings are moderate-sized (150 to 999 participants), creating opportunities to foster deeper engagement.
By subject matter, Medical Sciences, Technology, and Science lead the way, followed by Industry and Education. These five sectors have remained in the top positions for over a decade, underscoring sustained interest globally in healthcare innovation and digital transformation.
Overall, the report indicates a positive trajectory for the industry, with in-person events nearing the levels seen in 2019.
The 2024 rankings include data from over 11,000 meetings, marking an increase compared to the previous year.
