The International Defence Exhibition and Seminar, more commonly referred to as IDEAS, is a defence sector event, held biannually, in
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
. Since its inception by
President Pervez Musharraf
General Pervez Musharraf ( ur, , Parvez Muśharraf; born 11 August 1943) is a former Pakistani politician and four-star general of the Pakistan Army who became the tenth president of Pakistan after the successful military takeover of the ...
in 2000, it has grown to include more than 54,000 trade visitors, 290 delegates members (from 43 countries), 133 national exhibitors and 294 exhibitors from around the world in latest IDEAS 2016 held from 22 to 25 November 2016.
The Pakistan government attaches a high level of importance to IDEAS; despite the fact that it attracts a large number of delegates, it is seen as a vehicle for facilitating their own indigenous arms trade. The level of political involvement has been known to reach the highest echelons, with President
Asif Ali Zardari
Asif Ali Zardari ( ur, ; sd, ; born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician who is the president of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians and was the co-chairperson of Pakistan People's Party. He served as the 11th president of Pakist ...
personally inviting the Amir of Kuwait
Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to the event in 2008 in order to boost the chances of Pakistan's export of its indigenously developed
al-Khalid
The Al-Khalid ( ur, —, literally "The Eternal Tank") is a Pakistani main battle tank developed by Heavy Industries Taxila since the 1990s. It is based on the Chinese Type 90-IIM tan, whose original prototype was developed by China Nort ...
main battle tanks.
The Defence Export Promotion Organisation or more simpl
DEPO is the government agency responsible for the success and organisation of IDEAS. Typically they outsource some elements of production of the exhibition to private companies. In 2000 to 2006, Pegasus Consultancy Private Limited organised the event, but after the 2010 conference was forced to cancel because of the
catastrophic floods which hit Pakistan late that year, the contract for production of the event was then awarded to Badar Expo Solutions. Assessing how the event had grown since its inaugural occurrence in 2000, speaking at the 'soft launch' for IDEAS 2012, Prime Minister
Yousaf Raza Gillani
Yusuf Raza Gilani ( Urdu: ; born 9 June 1952), is a Pakistani politician who served as 18th Prime Minister of Pakistan from 25 March 2008, until his retroactive disqualification and ouster by the Supreme Court of Pakistan on 26 April 2012. ...
declared the exhibition a "mega event, that has become a global event in a short span of eleven years."
Latest edition of IDEAS was held in 2016 (22-25 November 2016) and the event was organized by DEPO (Defence Export Promotion Organization) whereas it was inaugurated by Prime Minister of Pakistan Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on DAY ONE and President of Pakistan Mamnoon Hussain attended the strategic seminar as Chief Guest held on evening of 1st day (22 November) at Moven Pick Hotel Karachi. The event was heavily attended by local as well as international delegations from more than 43 countries. IDEAS 2016 witnessed 293 International Exhibitors, 133 National Exhibitors and 54,000 trade visitors. The event coordination matters were managed by
DG DEPO Major General Agha Masood Akram
DG may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Death Grips, an American experimental hip hop group
* DG (character), in the science fiction series ''Tin Man''
* Dial Global, a radio network
* Dragon Gate, a Japanese professional wrestling promotion
...
, Brigadier Waheed Mumtaz, Colonel Fahim Imtiaz Abbassi and
Major Ejaz Ahmed Bhatti.
IDEAS 2018 has been planned from 27 to 30 November 2018 at Karachi Expo Center and it is expected to be attended in a more befitting manner where 07-10 country pavilions are expected. Being
10th Edition, the event's special preparations have been geared up under the management of
Major General Ahmed Mahmood Hayat
Major (Commandant (rank), commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with ...
and it is expected that IDEAS 2018 will break all the previous records of the exhibition.
The 11th Edition of IDEAS 2020 will be held at Expo centre Karachi on 24 November 2020.
History of the event
IDEAS 2000
The brainchild of the then Chief Executive of Pakistan, Gen. Parvez Musharraf, the first ever Tri-Service Defence Exhibition and the largest International Event of its kind in Pakistan, ‘IDEAS 2000’ was held at the EXPO Centre in Karachi, Pakistan, in November 2000
Mr. Mohammad Rafiq Tarar, President of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, honoured the event as Chief Guest. Service Chiefs of Pakistan Navy and Airforce were also present at the event.
The presence of delegates from 35 countries, with a combined procurement budget of over 20 billion dollars, prides IDEAS 2000 and its organizers for being the initiators in bringing together the nations with their geopolitical significance from across the globe.
IDEAS 2002
Occurring on 16–19 September 2002 at the Karachi Expo Centre, the seminar element of the conference had expanded by this point to include, over two days, the following themes: "Asian Security Scenario" and "The Asian Defence Market". The principal officer in charge of the event was Major General Syed Ali Hamed, then Director General of DEPO, who expected to receive 1500 attendees. The event was launched again by President Pervez Musharraf.
In its second year the event had attracted wide international interest with General Hamid reporting to ''
Dawn
Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's hori ...
'' newspaper that exhibitors from China, Turkey, France, Russia, Italy, Romania, Ukraine, United Kingdom, USA, UAE and Saudi Arabia were expected to attend.
Already by 2002, IDEAS was being touted as the largest commercial event in the history of Pakistan with 45 official delegations from 30 countries attending and 110 exhibition stands from 25 countries.
In his speech, President Musharraf said the seminar would go a long way in shortening the technological gap between developed and developing countries especially with regards to defence production and preparedness, he welcomed the international delegates: "Their presence positively reflect
ngthe standing that Pakistan holds in the world as well as the excellent relations that it enjoys with a host of nations."
IDEAS 2004
However the event did not go without criticism, with Campaign Against Arms Trade noting that delegations from
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
,
Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
and
Sudan
Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
were all present.
Despite this, there was full representation from the Pakistan Armed Forces with all of the Service Chiefs in attendance, and even though India had attempted to curtail US sales to Pakistan, there was a sizeable presence from American companies including from
Lockheed Martin
The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American aerospace, arms, defense, information security, and technology corporation with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It ...
and
Raytheon
Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitaliza ...
.
IDEAS 2006
By 2006 IDEAS was an established biannual international defence expo, it used the tag line (still in use today) of "Arms for Peace" and had matured to announce defence contracts as a major feature of the programme. 226 companies attended the exhibition of which 148 were non-Pakistani.
The first contract to be announced was the co-production of arms and ammunition with
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and the
Republic of Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its east ...
and was disclosed by the Chairman of
Pakistan Ordnance Factories (POF) Lt General Syed Sabahat Hussain."
Aside from this,
Dr Samar Mubarakmand from Pakistan's
National Engineering and Scientific Commission
The National Engineering & Scientific Commission (NESCOM) ( ur, ) is a Pakistani missile manufacturer and civilian research organization of Pakistan, under the administrative control of the Strategic Plans Division of Pakistan's National Command ...
(NESCOM) also announced
MoUs with undisclosed African and Muslim states of $50 million dollars, adding to NESCOM's existing export deals worth $500million over the last three years with no transfer of technology necessary.
According to the Pakistani News Service an "extensive media coverage was made with over 2,200 articles, editorials and news items published worldwide in leading newspapers and industry magazines."
IDEAS 2008
Gaining momentum from the previous exhibition in 2006, General Farooq also reported three months prior to the exhibition to be held at the Karachi Expo Centre on 24–28 November that 92% of exhibition space had already been sold.
And unlike the previous four exhibitions, which offered free entry to the expo element of the event, a fee would be levied of $25 per person.
The Prime Minister's address was centred on terrorism and extremism, its negative effects on the perception of Pakistan and the motives of terrorists to destabilise Pakistan's economy. He concluded that IDEAS, with its great many exhibitors, was proof that the terrorists were not having the diverse effect they would hope for. Other notable attendees included: Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad Khan, Chief Minister
Syed Qaim Ali Shah
Syed Qaim Ali Shah Jillani ( sd, سيد قائم علي شاه جيلاني , ur, ) is a Pakistani politician who served as the elected Chief Minister of Sindh for three terms. His last two terms combined, a total of eight years, makes him t ...
, Chief of Army Staff
General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and the State Minister for Defence Abdul Qayoom Khan Jatoi.
Cancellation of IDEAS 2010
On 15 October 2010, the Director General of DEPO issued a statement cancelling IDEAS, citing "devastating floods that effected 22 million people and resulted in loss of valuable lives and property"
as the reason.
Despite cancellation of the event exhibitors were guaranteed their deposit refunds and offered, should they wish to exhibit in 2012, the same rates as provided in 2010.
During the 'soft-launch' for IDEAS 2012 Prime Minister Gilani made further reference to the disappointment of the event being cancelled. According to The International News, "he said the steady graph of IDEAS and its success suffered a slight dip, when, IDEAS-2010 had to be cancelled at the eleventh hour due to the unprecedented and devastating floods in the country."
"However, we are back in the business with renewed zeal and zest."
Build up to IDEAS 2012
On 15 September 2011, 11 months after the previous IDEAS was cancelled due to ''
force majeure'' Badar Expo Solutions were assigned the contract, by DEPO, to resume the series for 2012 and 2014. The event, planned at the Karachi Expo Centre on 7–11 November, will see an enlargened seminar aspect focusing on tri-services military collateral, equipment and security services.
A 'soft-launch' for IDEAS 2012 was held at the Pakistan National Council of Arts in Islamabad on 30 March. Importantly, the event resumed IDEAS' tradition of full establishment-backing with the proceedings inaugurated by Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani; Senior Minister for Defence Production and Industries Chaudhry
Pervaiz Elahi
Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi (Urdu, pa, ; born 1 November 1945) is a Pakistani politician who is currently serving as the Chief Minister of Punjab, Pakistan, Chief Minister of Punjab and the President of Pakistan Muslim League (Q), a conservative C ...
;
Federal Minister for Defence, Chaudhry
Ahmad Mukhtar
Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar ( ur, احمد مختار) (22 June 1946 – 25 November 2020) was a Pakistani politician and businessman who served as the Defence Minister of Pakistan in the PM Yousaf Raza Gillani-led cabinet. He also owned Servis G ...
; Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Dr.
Firdous Ashiq Awan
Firdous Ashiq Awan (Punjabi, ur, , born 11 January 1970) is a Pakistani politician from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. She has served as Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting from 2019 to 2020, Federal Minister for N ...
; Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, General
Khalid Shahmeem Wynne; the Chief of Army Staff, General
Ashfaq Parvez Kayani
General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani (Urdu: ; born 20 April 1952), is a retired four-star general of the Pakistan Army who served as the 8th Chief of Army Staff , being appointed on 29 November 2007 after his predecessor Pervez Musharraf retired fro ...
; and the Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal
Tahir Rafique Butt
Tahir Rafique Butt (Urdu:طاهر رفيق بٹ;b. 1955), is a retired air officer who was the 13th Chief of Air Staff of the Pakistan Air Force serving from 19 March 2012 to 19 March 2015. He was replaced by Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman.
B ...
amongst many other Ministers, Diplomats and Industry representatives.
[http://app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=187463&Itemid=1 ]
The DG DEPO, Major General Tahir Ashraf Khan, stated that the exhibition would be bigger in size than ever before and according to Associated Press of Pakistan, with still 8 months until the event launches, "60 percent of space allocated for IDEAS 2012 ha
already been booked
ith
The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany.
Geography
Location
The Ith is immediatel ...
Turkey, China, Germany and France
ookinglarger spaces to display their defence equipment." Khan also predicted that over 2000 weapons systems would be on display that year.
Prime Minister Gilani signified the core tenet of the exhibition by stating that Pakistan will continue to "develop her military potential that guarantees peace with honour and dignity," furthermore according to The Nation, he said the country has significantly developed indigenous capabilities for producing sophisticated weapon systems and equipment.
IDEAS 2014 Held in November, 2014
IDEAS 2016 Held in November, 2016
IDEAS 2018 Held in November, 2018
IDEAS 2020 Will be held on 24 November 2020
References
{{reflist
External links
Official DEPO websiteVideo Broadcast of IDEAS 2016Videos of IDEAS 2014Video Broadcast of IDEAS 2012* https://web.archive.org/web/20110305162100/http://www.sassu.org.uk/html/ideas_seminar.htm
* http://depo.gov.pk/defenceIndustryNews.php?page=25
Trade fairs in Pakistan
Arms fairs
2000 establishments in Pakistan
Recurring events established in 2000