2026-09-09
On Wednesday 9 September 2026 Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) set out its outlook for the final quarter of 2026: more than 100 exhibitions, conferences and business events across its two venues, the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre (DICEC) on Sheikh Zayed Road and the Dubai Exhibition Centre (DEC) at Expo City Dubai, through the end of the year. The season closes with GITEX Global on 7-11 December, held at DEC for the first time and expected by DWTC to bring together more than 200,000 technology executives and 6,800 exhibitors from more than 180 countries. In parallel, the AED 10 billion (USD 2.72 billion) three-phase expansion of DEC has moved into Phase 2. Phase 1 was delivered in early 2026 and took the venue to 140,000 square metres of indoor event space and 50,000 visitors a day. Phase 2, under construction through 2026, will take it to 160,000 square metres and around 60,000 visitors a day, with an extended concourse, a new Eastern Access Road and a multi-storey car park with about 7,000 spaces. When the full expansion is completed in 2031, DEC is planned to span 180,000 square metres in 26 halls along a 1.2-kilometre line, receive 65,000 visitors a day and host more than 20 events at the same time. DWTC ties the programme to its target of AED 54 billion of annual economic contribution by 2033 under the Dubai Economic Agenda D33. Below are the verified figures, the Q4 calendar checked against the organisers’ own dates, the economics behind the venues and what the season means for companies that exhibit, supply or sell in Dubai.
The announcement at a glance
| Item | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Announcement | DWTC Q4 2026 business events outlook, Wednesday 9 September 2026 | DWTC press release; Gulf News, 9 September 2026 |
| Programme | More than 100 exhibitions, conferences and business events through the end of 2026 across technology, travel, tourism, energy, real estate, construction, beauty and sustainability | DWTC press release |
| Venues | DICEC in the Central Business District on Sheikh Zayed Road and DEC at Expo City Dubai | DWTC press release |
| Named shows | DUPHAT, Middle East Energy, Arabian Travel Market, Arab Lab, WETEX, World Green Economy Summit, Gulfood Manufacturing, Big 5 Global, Beautyworld Dubai, GITEX Global | DWTC press release |
| GITEX Global 2026 | 7-11 December at DEC, Expo City Dubai; more than 200,000 technology executives, 6,800 exhibitors, participants from more than 180 countries expected | DWTC; Dubai Media Office, 8 October 2025 |
| DEC expansion budget | AED 10 billion (USD 2.72 billion), master plan approved by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum on 23 September 2024 | Dubai Media Office |
| Phase 1 | Delivered in early 2026: 140,000 square metres of indoor event space, 50,000 visitors a day; first major events Gulfood and World Health Expo | DWTC press release |
| Phase 2 | Under construction through 2026: 160,000 square metres, around 60,000 visitors a day, extended concourse, Eastern Access Road, multi-storey parking with about 7,000 spaces initially; master plan target year 2028 | DWTC press release; Dubai Media Office |
| Full completion | 2031: 180,000 square metres, 26 halls on one level along 1.2 kilometres, 65,000 visitors a day, more than 20 simultaneous events | DWTC press release; Dubai Media Office |
| Economic target | AED 54 billion of annual economic contribution by 2033, in line with D33 | DWTC press release |
| Track record | Close to 6,800 events since inauguration, estimated economic output of AED 295 billion, more than 43 million business visitors | DWTC press release |
| 2025 result | 108 large-scale events, 2.18 million attendees, economic output of AED 25.03 billion, gross value added of AED 14.66 billion | DWTC 2025 Economic Impact Assessment, reported 8 June 2026 |
| Not disclosed | Itemised list of the 100-plus events, completion date of Phase 2, amount spent to date, contractor | Our reading of the announcement |
What was announced and what was not
A few points deserve a careful reading before the figures are repeated. First, the number of more than 100 events is a total for DWTC’s two venues through the end of the year, and the release names only ten shows; the rest are not itemised. Second, the release does not repeat the master plan year for Phase 2. The plan approved in September 2024 set 2028 for the second phase and 2031 for the third, and the 9 September statement only says that Phase 2 construction has continued through 2026 in line with plan. Third, the visitor figures of 50,000, 60,000 and 65,000 a day are design capacities of the venue, not forecasts of attendance. Fourth, the 6,800 exhibitors and 200,000 executives for GITEX Global are DWTC’s expectations, not registration counts. Finally, two of the three shows that the release names as openers of the season had already closed by the time it was issued: DUPHAT ran on 25-27 August and Middle East Energy on 1-3 September, so the programme described is DWTC’s autumn season rather than the calendar quarter in the strict sense. The dates in the table below are taken from the organisers’ own sites, not from the release, which groups several November shows under October.
The Q4 2026 calendar: ten named shows and their dates
| Event | Dates | Venue | Organiser and scale |
|---|---|---|---|
| DUPHAT | 25-27 August 2026 | DICEC, Halls 2 to 4 | INDEX Conferences and Exhibitions; pharmaceuticals and technologies |
| Middle East Energy | 1-3 September 2026 | DICEC | Informa Markets; 50th edition, moved from 7-9 April; 50,000 participants from 178 countries expected |
| Arabian Travel Market | 14-17 September 2026 | DICEC | 33rd edition, moved from 4-7 May; the organiser lists more than 2,800 exhibitors and over 55,000 attendees |
| Beautyworld Middle East | 6-8 October 2026 | DICEC | Messe Frankfurt Middle East |
| WETEX | 20-22 October 2026 | DICEC | DEWA; 27th edition; in 2025 more than 50,000 attendees from 65 countries and 3,100 exhibitors in 18 country pavilions |
| World Green Economy Summit | 21-22 October 2026 | DICEC | Dubai Supreme Council of Energy, DEWA and WGEO; 12th edition, theme From Success to Scale |
| ArabLab Live | 26-28 October 2026 | DICEC | Terrapinn; 44th year; more than 1,000 exhibiting organisations and about 15,000 attendees expected |
| Gulfood Manufacturing | 3-5 November 2026 | DICEC | DWTC; in 2025 61,907 visitors and more than 2,500 exhibitors from 79 countries in 21 halls |
| Big 5 Global | 23-26 November 2026 | DICEC | dmg events; more than 65,000 attendees, 1,800 exhibitors and 165 countries listed by the organiser |
| GITEX Global | 7-11 December 2026 (summit 7 December, exhibition 8-11 December) | DEC, Expo City Dubai | DWTC’s KAOUN International; more than 200,000 technology executives and 6,800 exhibitors from 180-plus countries expected |
Two features of this calendar stand out. The spring shows that were postponed in the spring of 2026, Middle East Energy and Arabian Travel Market, now sit in September, which is why the autumn is unusually dense: the September programme alone also includes the International Property Show and AIM Congress on 7-9 September, GISEC Global at DEC on 16-18 September and Seamless Middle East on 22-24 September, as covered in our review of the September 2026 business events season. The other feature is the split between the two venues: nine of the ten named shows stay at DICEC in the city centre, and GITEX Global becomes the first flagship to move to the expanded DEC, a change that DWTC first confirmed in its events calendar of 19 August 2026.
The DEC expansion: three phases, one 1.2-kilometre line
The Dubai Exhibition Centre opened at the Expo 2020 site and had 58,000 square metres of exhibition space before the expansion. On 23 September 2024 Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, approved a master plan to expand it in three phases with an investment of AED 10 billion. The plan is designed to make DEC the largest indoor events venue in the region, one and a half times the size of DICEC, and to allow Dubai to double the number of large-scale events it hosts each year from about 300 in 2023 to more than 600 by 2033. The table shows the phases as set out in the master plan and updated by the 9 September statement.
| Phase | Target year | Indoor event space | Daily visitor capacity | What else |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before expansion | 2024 | 58,000 square metres | Not stated | Venue on the Expo 2020 site next to the Expo 2020 metro station on Route 2020 |
| Phase 1 | Delivered in early 2026 (master plan: 2026) | 140,000 square metres, about 2.5 times the original | 50,000 | North and south halls; first major events Gulfood and World Health Expo |
| Phase 2 | Under construction through 2026 (master plan: 2028) | 160,000 square metres | Around 60,000 | Extended concourse linking the Phase 1 and Phase 2 halls, new Eastern Access Road, multi-storey parking with about 7,000 spaces initially |
| Phase 3, full completion | 2031 | 180,000 square metres | 65,000 | 26 halls on one contiguous level along 1.2 kilometres, more than 20 simultaneous events, a hotel with more than 300 keys in the master plan |
Construction has run while the venue stays open. In February 2025 The National reported about 1,000 workers on site erecting the steel frames of the north and south halls and building service tunnels for utilities, with January 2026 as the target for Phase 1. Amer Al Farsi, Vice President of Real Estate Development at DWTC, said on 9 September that Phase 1 has already demonstrated the scale and flexibility the expanded venue can provide, that Phase 2 builds on that foundation and that construction is progressing according to plan while DEC remains fully operational. The expansion sits inside the wider Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan and is coordinated with the growth of Al Maktoum International Airport, which lies next to Expo City in Dubai South.
Two venues, one operator: DICEC and DEC
DWTC now runs two full-scale venues at opposite ends of the city, and it says the pair gives organisers greater flexibility and allows several major exhibitions to run at the same time. For a visiting company the choice of venue changes the logistics. DICEC sits on Sheikh Zayed Road in the Central Business District, next to the World Trade Centre metro station on the Red Line and to the hotels and offices of DIFC and One Central; in August 2026 the Roads and Transport Authority opened a 500-metre bridge that cut the exit from the venue from 10 minutes to 2. DEC lies at Expo City Dubai in Dubai South, next to the Expo 2020 metro station on Route 2020 and close to Al Maktoum International Airport, with Expo Village and its more than 2,200 residential units nearby. Hotel capacity is the practical difference: the stock around DWTC is deep but expensive on show dates, while the hotel stock within walking distance of Expo City is far smaller, which makes the hotel with more than 300 keys in the DEC master plan and early booking more important for GITEX weeks than for shows at DICEC.
The economics: AED 295 billion since inauguration, AED 25 billion in 2025, AED 54 billion a year by 2033
DWTC opened in 1979 and says it has hosted close to 6,800 events since then, generating an estimated economic output of AED 295 billion and attracting more than 43 million business visitors to Dubai. Its 2025 Economic Impact Assessment, published on 8 June 2026, gives the latest annual picture, summarised in the table.
| Indicator, 2025 | Value | Change on 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Large-scale events | 108 | +8% |
| Attendees | 2.18 million, of whom 947,000 from abroad (44%) | Not stated |
| Average stay of an international attendee | 5.6 days per event, 22 companions per 100 attendees | Not stated |
| Total economic output | AED 25.03 billion | +12% |
| Gross value added to Dubai GDP | AED 14.66 billion | Record |
| Direct spending across sectors | AED 13.48 billion | Not stated |
| Jobs supported | 94,000 | +10% |
| Disposable household income generated | AED 4.7 billion | +13.6% |
| Multiplier | Every AED 1 spent at a DWTC event generated AED 5.5 in total output | Not stated |
| Largest sectors by gross value added | Healthcare AED 3.73 billion, food and beverage AED 2.38 billion, ICT and emerging technology AED 1.99 billion | Not stated |
The AED 54 billion target comes from the same strategy. When DWTC and Informa announced their joint venture on 6 March 2025, they committed to tripling the contribution of Dubai’s meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions sector to AED 54 billion a year by 2033, and the DEC master plan of September 2024 uses the same figure. The announcements do not state whether the AED 54 billion is measured as total output or as gross value added. Against the 2025 gross value added of AED 14.66 billion it implies a 3.7-fold increase in eight years; against the 2025 output of AED 25.03 billion, a 2.2-fold increase. Either way, the arithmetic depends on the venue capacity that the DEC phases add, on the doubling of large-scale events to more than 600 a year and on the international share of visitors, who spent an average of AED 9,900 per event in 2025.
What the season means for business
- Exhibitors: check the venue before anything else. Nine of the ten named shows run at DICEC on Sheikh Zayed Road, GITEX Global runs at DEC in Expo City, and the two sites have different halls, freight routes, parking and hotels. Stand contractors, freight forwarders and hotel blocks should be booked against the confirmed dates in the table, not against the months in the press release.
- Buyers and visitors: the autumn concentration of shows after the spring postponements means the same weeks host several flagship events. Hotel rates near DWTC rise sharply on show dates: a Khaleej Times price check found increases of up to 175% at Novotel World Trade Centre for September 2026 dates.
- Suppliers and contractors: the DEC expansion is a construction and fit-out pipeline through 2031, and the 100-plus events generate demand for stand building, logistics, audio-visual, catering, staffing and printing. A foreign company can exhibit without a local entity, but to deliver services on site, hire staff and invoice in dirhams on a regular basis it usually needs a UAE licence with the right activity, a corporate bank account and residence visas.
- Companies deciding where to base a regional office: the numbers above show why organisers commit years ahead. In 2025 international visitors made up 44% of attendance and stayed 5.6 days per event, and DWTC’s calendar now covers energy, construction, food, healthcare, beauty, laboratories and technology in one quarter, which is a scheduling advantage for a sales team based in Dubai.
- Abu Dhabi runs in parallel: ADNEC Group has scheduled more than 290 events in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain in the second half of 2026, including ADIPEC on 2-5 November, so a UAE trip in Q4 can cover both emirates.
Checklist for a company planning to exhibit or sell at the Q4 shows
- Confirm the venue and the dates on the organiser’s site: DICEC or DEC, and whether your show is one of those rescheduled in 2026.
- Register as an exhibitor or trade visitor early; several shows use separate registration for the summit and the exhibition days, as GITEX does for 7 December and 8-11 December.
- Book hotels and stand contractors against the confirmed dates, especially for GITEX weeks at Expo City, where walking-distance hotel stock is limited.
- Decide whether you need a UAE entity: exhibiting does not require one, while signing local contracts, hiring staff and regular dirham invoicing usually do.
- Check the VAT position: a UAE business must register for VAT once taxable supplies exceed AED 375,000 a year, and foreign exhibitors selling goods on site should check their obligations with the Federal Tax Authority before the show.
- Use an ATA Carnet for temporary import of samples and demonstration equipment; in the UAE the carnet system is administered by Dubai Chambers.
- Open a corporate bank account well before the show if you expect to collect payments from UAE customers.
- Plan visas: many nationalities receive a visa on arrival, and staff who will attend repeatedly can hold a residence visa through a UAE company.
How Atlant Capital can help
Atlant Capital registers companies on the mainland and in the free zones of the UAE for exhibitors, event suppliers, distributors and technology vendors who want to turn a stand at DWTC or DEC into a permanent presence, and helps choose the licence activities that match trade, services or manufacturing. We prepare the corporate documents that organisers, venues and main contractors ask for during vendor onboarding, arrange residence and work visas for owners, partners and employees, and open corporate and personal accounts in UAE banks for receiving payments from customers and paying rent, salaries and suppliers in dirhams. If your company plans to exhibit in Dubai in the fourth quarter of 2026 and wants an entity in place before the first contract, our company setup service maps the licence, account and visa steps against the show dates.
Conclusion
The 9 September 2026 statement is less an announcement of new facts than a progress report: DWTC will run more than 100 events in the closing months of the year, the postponed spring shows have landed in September, GITEX Global moves to Expo City on 7-11 December, and the AED 10 billion expansion of DEC has passed its first milestone, 140,000 square metres and 50,000 visitors a day, and is building towards 160,000 square metres in Phase 2 and 180,000 square metres along 1.2 kilometres in 2031. The figures that would matter most to a bidder or an exhibitor, the Phase 2 completion date, the contractor and the itemised calendar, remain with the organisers, and any decision should be checked against the organisers’ dates, which in several cases differ from the months in the release.
FAQ
How many events will Dubai World Trade Centre host in the fourth quarter of 2026 and where?
DWTC said on 9 September 2026 that more than 100 exhibitions, conferences and business events are scheduled across its two venues through the end of 2026: the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre on Sheikh Zayed Road and the Dubai Exhibition Centre at Expo City Dubai. The release names DUPHAT, Middle East Energy, Arabian Travel Market, Beautyworld, WETEX, the World Green Economy Summit, ArabLab, Gulfood Manufacturing, Big 5 Global and GITEX Global; by the organisers’ dates the shows run from 25 August to 11 December 2026.
What is the status of the Dubai Exhibition Centre expansion?
The AED 10 billion expansion approved on 23 September 2024 has three phases. Phase 1 was delivered in early 2026 and took DEC to 140,000 square metres of indoor event space and 50,000 visitors a day. Phase 2 has been under construction through 2026 and will take the venue to 160,000 square metres and around 60,000 visitors a day, adding an extended concourse, a new Eastern Access Road and a car park with about 7,000 spaces; the master plan set 2028 for this phase. Full completion in 2031 will give 180,000 square metres in 26 halls along 1.2 kilometres, 65,000 visitors a day and more than 20 simultaneous events.
When and where is GITEX Global 2026?
GITEX Global 2026 runs on 7-11 December 2026 at the Dubai Exhibition Centre in Expo City Dubai, with a summit day on 7 December and the exhibition on 8-11 December. It is the first edition held at DEC after decades at DWTC’s city-centre halls, and DWTC expects more than 200,000 technology executives, 6,800 exhibitors and participants from more than 180 countries. The move to December and to Expo City was announced by Dubai Media Office on 8 October 2025.
What is DWTC’s economic impact and what does the AED 54 billion target mean?
According to DWTC’s 2025 Economic Impact Assessment, 108 large-scale events attracted 2.18 million attendees, 947,000 of them from abroad, and generated total economic output of AED 25.03 billion, gross value added of AED 14.66 billion and 94,000 jobs. Since its inauguration DWTC has hosted close to 6,800 events with an estimated output of AED 295 billion and more than 43 million business visitors. The AED 54 billion is DWTC’s target for the annual contribution of Dubai’s business events sector by 2033 under the D33 agenda, described in 2025 as a tripling of the sector; the announcements do not specify whether it is measured as output or gross value added.
