WOCA headed for Sydney in 2018
The next World Congress of Accountants (WCOA) will be held in Sydney in 2018. The event, which is expected to attract 5000 leading accounting professionals, is the latest to be secured for the International Convention Centre Sydney (ICC Sydney). To date, ICC Sydney has 18 international business events planned, all revolving around the professional services sector and contributing an estimated economic impact of almost $150 million.
The bid for WCOA was led by Alex Malley from CPA Australia and Lee White from the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia, who have a combined representation of 200,000 business, finance and accounting professionals. The pair received support from Business Events Sydney (BESydney) and the NSW Government.
“The NSW Government’s decision to invest in infrastructure across the city is certainly underlining Sydney as the destination of choice for international business event decision makers,” said ICC Sydney chief executive and AEG Ogden’s group director of convention centers, Geoff Donaghy.
Mr Donaghy also said he was pleased ICC Sydney and AEG Ogden’s global experience could provide an added degree of confidence when attracting events for ICC Sydney and felt the team had proven themselves with WCOA 2010 in Kuala Lumpur.
“The last time Australia hosted this highly sought-after congress was 1972 in Sydney,” said Lyn Lewis-Smith, CEO of BESydney. “To have it return to our shores some 40 years later is testament to the strength of our professional services industry and global reputation.”
The range of professional services sector events ICC Sydney will host will provide excellent opportunities for global collaboration, trade and investment. The NSW Government also committed to investing in the world-class base for international banks, financial and professional services companies, which will be located in the Barangaroo development. These facilities were a key selling point in the bidding process.
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