General News and Information

Rajan Datar

Posted on by admin
    ITIC 2019 Speaker
    Rajan Datar
    Broadcaster and Journalist
    BBC

    Rajan Datar is a hugely respected and versatile broadcaster and journalist who cut his teeth feature-writing for national publications including the Guardian and the Times and then presented and reported for the BBC on television and radio, to domestic global audiences – and often live as a reporter on Newsnight and as an award-winning presenter for BBC 2’s The Money Programme, writing and presenting ten half hour programmes on popular brands … from Google to Tesco.

    His speciality has been current affairs and culture and he is the presenter of the World Service’s flagship discussion programme The Forum, as well as being for the last decade, host of the weekly feedback programme Over To You. He has made many documentaries for Radio 4 and is a regular contributor to Radio 4’s flagship Arts programme, Saturday Review.

    He has reported for popular consumer programmes such as Watchdog, including live.

    For the last decade he has become a globally-recognised presenter of more than forty travel documentaries for the BBC in which he has immersed himself in local cultures and quirky situations …from fighting a Mongolian wrestler in the Gobi desert , to abseiling with refuse collectors in the favelas of Rio, to living the life of a Buddhist Monk for several days in Thailand, singing with a 25 piece male polyphonic Georgian choir in the caucuses…. and living with a cult.

    Not many people can display the versatility to alternately present the high-brow discussion programme “The Forum” on the BBC World Service, then engage in a bout in front of a public audience with a Mongolian wrestler in the Gobi desert for the BBC Travel show or play on stage at a New Orleans zydeco band .. along with a background in 50 min prime time TV docs on subjects that vary from the collapse of Enron to the Fast Fashion industry for the BBC …

    He has just completed a film for BBC News and Current Affairs about his own father’s Dementia, earning plaudits from the Director of News and CA amongst others ..

    He is also an in-demand moderator and speaker at panels run by the UN amongst others and tours the world – from Singapore to Australia to the USA – presenting entertaining and thought-provoking sessions on the Travel Industry and Broadcasting today.

Christopher Rodrigues, CBE

Posted on by admin
ITSC 2019 Speaker
Christopher Rodrigues, CBE
Chairman
Port of London Authority

Christopher Rodrigues became Chairman of the Port of London Authority in January 2016 and the Chairman of Openwork in January 2014.

Christopher was Chairman of the British Council from 2016 – 2019; Chairman of the British Bobsleigh and Skeleton Association from 2013 – 2019; Chairman of VisitBritain from 2007 – 2017; Chairman of International Personal Finance and Windsor Leadership from 2007 – 2015; Chairman of The Almeida Theatre from 2008 – 2016, and in July 2016 stepped down as a Council member and Trustee of the National Trust. He was on the Executive Committee of the World Travel and Tourism Council from 2007 – 2016.

Christopher is a graduate of Cambridge University and the Harvard Business School. He rowed for Cambridge in the 1970 and 1971 Boat Races, is a past-Chairman of Leander Club and is a Steward of Henley Royal Regatta.

He was made Visiting Professor at the University of Surrey in 2009 and a Visiting Professor at Cranfield School of Management in 2010. He was awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of the University of Surrey (DUniv) in April 2013. In May 2018 he became an Ambassador for the World Travel and Tourism Council, and in January 2019 the Development Committee Chairman at University College School, Hampstead.

Mr. Ibrahim Ayoub

Posted on by admin
ITIC 2018 Advisory Board
Mr. Ibrahim Ayoub
Group CEO & MD
ITIC & Invest Tourism Ltd

Ibrahim is the Group CEO, MD and Board Member of International Tourism Investment Corporation Ltd, ITIC Ltd, Invest Tourism Ltd – which are UK based companies and Daiichi Display Ltd, based in Mauritius.>/p>

The businesses he spearheads, specialize in the conception, production and organisation of tourism investment conferences around the world; advisory and consultancy services; facilitating and structuring investments in tourism projects; and providing insights, market intelligence, publishing and marketing services to enhance the value of his customers.

Ibrahim has created a recognized global brand called International Tourism & Investment Conference – ITIC (www.itic.uk). ITIC delivers annual international tourism investment conferences in collaboration with ministries of tourism of different countries and the leading industry organisations to provide a forum for delegates to interact with leaders and policy makers of the travel and tourism and financial services sectors to discuss on current but also emerging issues and challenges as well as on future trends in the sustainable development of travel and tourism. Ibrahim has created a platform for project owners/developers to engage with potential investors.

He brings to clients a unique blend of 30 years of experience in publishing, creation & organization of events, advisory, financial services and tourism expertise at International level.

Ibrahim hails from a family of industrialists who pioneered in the 1930s the introduction of heavy vehicles (buses and lorries) in the island of Mauritius. With the entrepreneurial skills he acquired from his family, he has been working with high-profile companies and multinationals to develop their marketing and communication strategies and has the ability, expertise and experience taking a project from its initial stage/conception up to the production of the final product delivered on time at world-class quality to any place in the world.

Ibrahim sits on the Advisory Boards of the International Tourism & Investment Conference, Investing in Tourism Sustainability Conference for Southeast Europe and the Commonwealth Entrepreneurs Club and a member of the Institute of Directors in the UK. He is a member of the African Tourism Board and sits on the Project Hope Africa Covid-19 Task Force. In Mauritius, he is the President of Skal International, a founding member of the Rotary Club of Floreal and a member of Global Finance Mauritius (GFM). He also forms part of the PR and Communication Committee of Global Finance Mauritius.

Gerald Lawless

Posted on by admin
ITIC 2018 Advisory Board
Gerald Lawless
Director ITIC &
WTTC Ambassador

Former Chairman, World Travel and Tourism Council. Now Ambassador for the WTTC.
Non-executive Director Dubai Expo2020 Advisory Board.
Non-executive Director Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority advisory board.
Non-executive Director Temes Hotels and Resorts, Greece.
Non-executive Director, Adnec, Abu Dhabi.
Former President and CEO Jumeirah Group.
Director International Tourism Investment Corporation

Gerald Lawless started his career with Forte Hotels which culminated in him setting up and growing Forte’s operations in the Middle East.

After a 23-year career with Forte Hotels, he joined Jumeirah in 1997 and helped establish it as one of the premier luxury hotel brands in the world. Taking on the challenge of launching Burj Al Arab, the world’s most luxurious hotel, after the successful introduction of Jumeirah Beach Hotel to an eager travelling public, Mr. Lawless went on to become President and Group Chief Executive Officer of the Jumeirah Group. He then lead the development of the group for the next twenty years.

  • At the beginning of 2016, having served at the helm of the Jumeirah Group, Mr. Lawless assumed a new leadership position responsible for tourism and hospitality in Dubai Holding, the Group’s parent company. During this period he served as Chairman of the World Travel and Tourism Council.He has now retired from these roles and continues to reside in Dubai.

Mr. Lawless is a Graduate of Shannon College of Hotel Management in Ireland and holds the following Honorary Degrees:

  • Doctor of Business Administration in Hospitality Management at the Johnson & Wales University, State of Rhode Island, USA;
  • Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws at the National University of Ireland, Galway;
  • Honorary Doctorate at the Middlesex University Dubai.

He served as a member of the Global Agenda Council on the Future of Mobility with the World Economic Forum. He is fellow member of the Institute of Hospitality; and a member of the International Advisory Board of the Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne.

Recipient of the 2017 Presidential Distinguished Service Award for the Irish Abroad.

During his 45 year career he has worked in the following locations: Galway, Geneva, Southampton, Swindon, Glasgow, Dubai 1978 to 1982, Durban, London, Bahrain, Dublin, and Dubai again since 1991.

He has been responsible for the development of hotels in various regions and has visited many cities within these countries and regions including North Africa, virtually all countries of the Middle East, the CIS and Asian countries such as Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Thailand, Cambodia.He has participated in UAE trade delegations to China where he has negotiated management agreements for over 8 hotels.

He has also been responsible for the Caribbean division of Forte hotels in Bermuda, Jamaica, Bahamas, Barbados and Guyana.

In his capacity as Chairman of the World Travel and Tourism Council 2016 to 2018 he has addressed conferences throughout the world.

He has also attended the Annual World Economic Forum in Davos on nine occasions.

He has been a member of the Farmleigh Forum and the advisory Board of the Global Irish Network.

Stand Enquiry

Posted on by admin
If you are interested in exhibiting at the conference, complete & submit the following stand enquiry form. Our team will contact you to discuss the options available. Stands are individually priced based on location, size and number of corners.

    I agree to the terms and conditions
    (view terms & conditions)