Founded by the General Authority for Military Industries (GAMI), Saudi Arabia's World Defense Show, which launched in March 2022, is already planning for the next edition, which is set to take place from 4-8 February 2024. The inaugural edition saw over 600 exhibitors and over 65,000 visits throughout four trade days, in the Kingdom's capital of Riyadh. Following the success of the first-ever World Defense Show, and largest event of its kind in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which resulted in SAR 29.7 billion ($7.9 billion) in deals and announcements, has affirmed unprecedented demand from the local and global defense market. Moreover, it is naturally paramount to WDS to continue to support the Kingdom's defense sector strategy along the Kingdom's historic localization journey, by building on the show's successful showing in its inaugural edition. With this strategic objective in mind, the organizers have conducted extensive post-show research to help inform plans to enhance the experience and optimize opportunities for WDS attendees and participants. Independent survey results revealed that 88% of attendees are highly likely to return to Riyadh for the 2024 edition. Overall, 95% of visitors rated exhibitor quality between 'good' and 'excellent' as organizers confirm 30% of exhibition space has already been re-booked by major industry players highly keen to exhibit at World Defense Show 2024. As part of the enhancement initiatives to address the high demand, WDS organizers are reviewing potential expansion plans to include a third exhibition hall offering participants additional exhibition space, to complement the two existing main halls. Moreover, WDS is set to grow from a four-day trade event to five days, accommodating opportunities for a broader variety of industry professionals to discover the world of defense. Chief Executive Officer of World Defense Show Andrew Pearcey, commented: "The incredible feedback we received from the industry, following the success of our first edition, has propelled us to continue growing and enhancing the offering of the show. We strive to serve and satisfy the industry's needs, so it is crucial that we work alongside all our partners to ensure we continue to evolve all areas of the show." Major global players including defense giants Lockheed Martin, Boeing, General Dynamics and John Cockerill Defense were amongst those who participated in 2022, signing major deals with local companies. Many key local manufacturers the likes of Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI), Science Technologies, NCMS, Wahaj, governmental entities, and up-and-coming local industry players, exhibited at the show as well. The World Defense Show's flagship defense event founded by GAMI, focuses on military interoperability across air, land, sea, security and satellite defense systems. The biennial event enables the industry to keep pace with developments across defense and technology. By connecting key defense contacts, primes, SMEs, and buyers, World Defense Show has laid the foundation to advance the defense industry, showcase future technologies and address the challenges presented via defense systems integration.
