DEAL, the Middle East's premier event for the amusement and attractions industry, is almost certainly going to be postponed again in light of the UAE's continued lockdown in face of the Covid-19 pandemic. The show, originally set for late March, was postponed until June 15-17, but it has become clear to the organisers, International Expo-Consults, that it will be impractical to continue with that plan. We understand that IEC is working with the venue, the Dubai World Trade Centre, to come up with an alternative. There are several alternatives, ranging from a suitable date later this year to cancellation and resetting the show for its regular dates in March-April of 2021.

The trade association representing the industry, MENALAC, has praised the common sense of the organisers. General secretary Prakash Vivekanand said: "I have been in close contact with the organisers of DEAL. They are very supportive of the industry and are in favour of moving the event to 2021. They realise that the leisure and airline industry would not have returned to normalcy by then. However, they are waiting for a clear direction from the venue owners on possible date options for 2021 so that they can make a formal announcement." (2020/04/28)