There is a lot of Swedish participation at the 15th international aids conference held in Bangkok’s Impact center 11 to 16 July. And much of it is hidden behind the scenes.
Sweden deliver everything from conference staff handling logistics, construction and design firms that make booths to audio and video engineers responsible for crisp images and clear sound in the big Impact Arena.
“We are 16 people from us here,” says Linn Kjällman from conference organiser Congrex in Stockholm.
And at the control station in the arena we are told by a couple of Swedish staff from event engineering specialist AV-Teknik that this is a very big operation for their part too.
But most Swedes at the conference are those who have been involved in the planning and organisational issues prior to the conference, led by the Stockholm-based International Aids Society, IAS.
“From my point of view this has been a very smooth and well run conference. Thailand has done a very good job as host. I am really impressed with the Thai performance,” says Rodrigo Garay, Acting CEO IAS and Chair of the organising committee for the conference.
Soon IAS moves to Geneva but this conference provides an infrastructure foundation for the coming world aids conferences, stresses Rodrigo Garay.
“Many of the support functions we have here can be reused in future events. Before Bangkok organisers made everything themselves and disassembled it all when the show closed. The solution we made in Sweden will save a lot of money in coming events,” says Rodrigo Garay.
And IAS booth at the Bangkok event is of course built by a Swede.
In this case Stefan Widing´s Thai construction company Logans Thailand put up the good work.
