Meeting industry in Prague, which is an industry associated with organizing congresses, conferences, corporate meetings and incentive events, generates in multiplication an annual income of between 170 and 200 million Euro to public budgets. According to the new KPMG study prepared for the Prague Convention Bureau, only 3,9% - between 6.5 and 7.5 million Euro of the sum - will return to Prague's budget.

Based on KPMG's analysis, the performance of Prague's tourism business, of which a key part is the meeting industry, represented roughly 1.3 billion Euro in 2016, which is about one third of the Czech Republic's overall performance. At the same time, it is also 6 to 7% of the economic performance of the capital, which makes tourism one of the most important economic sectors in Prague. Meeting industry accounts for 1.1% of Prague's GDP, solely to the tourism industry it is for 15%.

Unlike leisure tourism, the meeting industry is severalfold more profitable in terms of the amounts of money international congress participants spend. On average, a congress delegate coming from abroad spends 218 Euro, which is four to five times more than the expenses of a usual visitor. Total revenues from the meeting industry, including sales to the local participants, reach up to billion Euro in multiplication.

"The meeting industry, however, brings not just billions to public budgets, but it also creates specific jobs. In Prague this means roughly 5,470 full-time jobs, which is 5.5% of the total employment in tourism in the metropolis," says Ondřej Špaček, KPMG expert on tourism. Meeting industry in the Czech capital has also predispositions for further growth. According to data from the Czech Statistical Office, 2016 was a year when the highest number of events in the last 10 years took place in Prague. "Prague, definitely, has a lot to offer to the event organizers," adds Roman Muška, Director of the Prague Convention Bureau, and he continues: "In addition to the rich history, there is, above all, easy access to the city, and the city‘s capacities. You can fly to Prague directly from 162 international destinations, and stay at one of the 795 hotels offering nearly 92,000 beds. According to the 2012 area comprehensive statistical census of the meetings and incentive tourism executed by the Ministry of Regional Development and Tourism, Prague offers 243 conference facilities with a total capacity of over 169,000 persons."

Read full article, including statistical data.

Infographic by the Prague Convention Bureau:

Also, a total of 1,264 meeting industry experts from 79 countries met in Prague at the 56th Congress of the International Congress and Convention Association – ICCA, from 12 to 15 November. The event was organized by the Prague Convention Bureau with the support of more than 40 local partners. The aim of the congress was the exchange of the latest knowledge and trends in the industry. Prague thus had a unique opportunity to present its meeting infrastructure to the professional meeting organizers, representatives of international associations and other professional organizations from around the world. In the years to come, revenues from events organized as a result of the delegates’ direct experience could reach up to several billion Czech crowns. 

“With a final official figure of 1,264 attendees from 79 countries, this year’s ICCA Congress was 25% larger than ever before with our widest-ever geographical coverage.  In my presentations during the Congress, I spoke a great deal about our industry’s role in building bridges, the theme of our Congress promotion over the last year: bridges between cultures, across business sectors, between people holding different opinions.  These bridges also helped set up new business partnerships, kick-started new dialogues on important issues, and drew the attention of politicians and policy-makers to the vital role of our industry and the impact of international meetings that extends far beyond the obvious expenditure by delegates.  I believe that not only did our delegates thoroughly enjoy their time in Prague, but that we have left an important legacy for the Czech meetings industry in terms of transferred knowledge, improved skills, and greater political awareness,” concludes Nina Freysen-Pretorius, ICCA President. Read more.