The inaugural Festival of Media MENA

The inaugural Festival of Media MENA conference last month gathered top industry leaders from Google, Facebook, and MediaCom to discuss the latest trends driving the media landscape in the region. Dubai Media City, the MENA region's largest media hub, was the strategic partner for the conference, with Mohammed Abdullah, Managing Director of Dubai Media City, taking part in a panel discussion where he discussed ‘solving the talent conundrum.'

Mohammed Abdullah highlighted Dubai's development into an exporter, rather than an importer of talent, and its growth into a dynamic media hub. He said, "Dubai, and DMC in particular, has attracted leading international media companies over the past 15 years, and supported the growth of local companies. DMC is now home to 22,000 knowledge workers. The emirate is exporting talent across the Middle East and regional media companies now look to Dubai as a place from which to recruit talent.

The Festival of Media, which also takes place in Europe, Latin America and Asia, is the only global event focused on media innovation, creativity and evolution, tackling industry issues and themes such as branded content, advertising and social media.

Speaking about the conference, Mohammed Abdullah, said, "The Festival of Media is a true celebration of creativity and innovation, and we are delighted to have supported the inaugural Middle East conference. Dubai being selected as the location to host the event is testament to the widespread growth of the emirate's media industry. We will continue to pledge our support to festivals and platforms that encourage the growth of the sector here in Dubai, and look at ways in which we can promote the development of talent."
Source: WAM