All hands on deck for Summer Davos

By Zhang Xiaomin (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-09-10 08:38

DALIAN: Participants of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) New Champions 2009 can sense Dalian's preparedness as soon as they set foot on this coastal city in Liaoning province.

At the airport, signs pointing the way to the shuttle service to the hotels are prominently displayed. If you do miss them, there are the several special service counters manned by volunteers, set up especially for the Summer Davos.

The city is all geared up for a successful meeting that gets under way today, according to Xu Guochen, vice-director of the city's coordination office for the event.

Xu says special passageways, lounges, service counters and parking lots have been earmarked at the airport for the convenience of the participants.

"All measures have been taken to cope with possible emergencies such as flight delays and interruptions to the power supply," he says.

The Paris-based Publicis Groupe has made the reservation for participants at five-star hotels in the downtown area. Some of them, such as Furama Hotel Dalian, have undergone a complete makeover for the meeting.

"Our hotel is more comfortable and safer now," Peter Sun, assistant to the general manager of Furama, told China Daily.

"For example, only those with a key to a guest room can take the lift to the guest room floors." Sun says Furama will also provide individualized service to guests during the meeting.

"It is the month of Ramadan, so we will serve meals before dawn for the Muslim participants," he says.

Xu Guochen believes Dalian's hotels are well-prepared to meet all the demands of the participants and support staff.

Convenient transport facilities have been arranged between the five official hotels and the meeting venue.

Dalian has built several battery-charging stations for about 257 hybrid automobiles that will transport participants during the meeting, Xu said.

The staff manning these stations, as well as the car drivers, are all well trained.

Xu also points out that Dalian has put in place measures to prevent the H1N1 flu, including hygiene training for all staff and medical personnel.

The security team has worked out 24 detailed schemes to take into account every aspect of security for the meeting.

More than 600 volunteers, including students, ushers, translators, drivers and tour guides will be on hand to ensure the meeting goes smoothly.

They have also been put through training that includes an understanding of what the WEF is all about and social etiquette.

Wang Fang, key coordinator of the volunteer training program, told China Daily that the 28 ushers chosen from 300 candidates are "good-looking, well-educated and have a good command of English".

"They have been training since the beginning of August," he added.