emirates7 - Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), the region's leading business enabler and global events powerhouse, and Informa, the leading international B2B Live Events, Digital Services and Academic Markets Group, have signed a partnership agreement to a new business, inD.
First announced in March 2025, this new partnership business combines DWTC’s leadership in global B2B event IPs with Informa’s international scale and expertise to accelerate growth across the UAE, the wider super-region, and internationally – further enhancing Dubai’s position as a leading global hub for B2B Live Events and innovation.
inD brings together a portfolio of more than 40 major B2B brands serving a range of high growth market categories, including Healthcare (WHX), Energy (Middle East Energy), Aviation (Dubai Airshow), Food & Beverage (Gulfood), Information & Communications Technology (GITEX Global) and Information Security (GISEC).
These brands are expected to deliver revenues of more than US$650 million in 2026, with a strong pipeline of forward growth as demand for high impact, B2B live experiences continues to rise.
B2B Live Events play a vital role in convening industries, thought leaders and decision makers to foster innovation and stimulate growth and investment. They enable companies to access new markets, showcase products and services and build lasting partnerships.
The formation of inD comes at a pivotal moment, as Dubai significantly increasing its world-class venue capacity, with the expansion at Dubai Exhibition Centre delivering 140,000 square metres of event capacity in 2026 further cementing its position as one of the most dynamic and innovative markets for B2B Live Events.
The first inD brand to run in 2026 will be Gulfood (26-30 January), which will be hosted at an unprecedented increased scale across DWTC’s two flagship venues, the Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre (DICEC) and Dubai Exhibition Centre (DEC), for the first time, welcoming over 8,500 exhibitors, showcasing 1.5 million products from 195 countries.
This will be closely followed by WHX Dubai (9-12 February) and WHX Labs Dubai (10-13 February), which will run concurrently across both major venues for the first time, with more than 4,800 exhibitors and 270,000+ Healthcare professionals expected from more than 180 countries.
Helal Saeed Almarri, CEO, Dubai World Trade Centre, said, “Dubai has long been the world’s leading destination for global business events. This partnership now elevates that position further by transforming Dubai into an IP and knowledge hub that not only accelerates international growth opportunities for DWTC’s flagship brands but also strengthens Dubai’s long-term GDP impact, further cementing its role as a leading global player in B2B events. Together with Informa, we are building a platform for sustained growth, innovation and global reach.”
Stephen A. Carter, CEO, Informa Group, added, "The creation of inD deepens our partnership with DWTC at a time of structural growth for our industry, strong economic growth across the region, and dynamic market growth in the UAE in particular, as the supply of high quality venue space increases to meet growing demand for B2B Live Events."
First announced in March 2025, this new partnership business combines DWTC’s leadership in global B2B event IPs with Informa’s international scale and expertise to accelerate growth across the UAE, the wider super-region, and internationally – further enhancing Dubai’s position as a leading global hub for B2B Live Events and innovation.
inD brings together a portfolio of more than 40 major B2B brands serving a range of high growth market categories, including Healthcare (WHX), Energy (Middle East Energy), Aviation (Dubai Airshow), Food & Beverage (Gulfood), Information & Communications Technology (GITEX Global) and Information Security (GISEC).
These brands are expected to deliver revenues of more than US$650 million in 2026, with a strong pipeline of forward growth as demand for high impact, B2B live experiences continues to rise.
B2B Live Events play a vital role in convening industries, thought leaders and decision makers to foster innovation and stimulate growth and investment. They enable companies to access new markets, showcase products and services and build lasting partnerships.
The formation of inD comes at a pivotal moment, as Dubai significantly increasing its world-class venue capacity, with the expansion at Dubai Exhibition Centre delivering 140,000 square metres of event capacity in 2026 further cementing its position as one of the most dynamic and innovative markets for B2B Live Events.
The first inD brand to run in 2026 will be Gulfood (26-30 January), which will be hosted at an unprecedented increased scale across DWTC’s two flagship venues, the Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre (DICEC) and Dubai Exhibition Centre (DEC), for the first time, welcoming over 8,500 exhibitors, showcasing 1.5 million products from 195 countries.
This will be closely followed by WHX Dubai (9-12 February) and WHX Labs Dubai (10-13 February), which will run concurrently across both major venues for the first time, with more than 4,800 exhibitors and 270,000+ Healthcare professionals expected from more than 180 countries.
Helal Saeed Almarri, CEO, Dubai World Trade Centre, said, “Dubai has long been the world’s leading destination for global business events. This partnership now elevates that position further by transforming Dubai into an IP and knowledge hub that not only accelerates international growth opportunities for DWTC’s flagship brands but also strengthens Dubai’s long-term GDP impact, further cementing its role as a leading global player in B2B events. Together with Informa, we are building a platform for sustained growth, innovation and global reach.”
Stephen A. Carter, CEO, Informa Group, added, "The creation of inD deepens our partnership with DWTC at a time of structural growth for our industry, strong economic growth across the region, and dynamic market growth in the UAE in particular, as the supply of high quality venue space increases to meet growing demand for B2B Live Events."