IAAPA Europe, Middle East, Africa Public Affairs

Making Your Voice Heard

Working together the members of IAAPA are a positive influence on the legislation that impacts our industry. IAAPA leaders actively lobby national and local officials on wide ranging issues and rules.

IAAPA Europe, Middle East, and Africa has impacted local public affairs in a number of ways...

Security: IAAPA has established a position in the European Commission Operators’ Forum for the Protection of Public Spaces and has actively participated in the Forum’s ongoing work. We have already delivered security guidelines for IAAPA members and are in talks with European Commission officials to deliver a workshop on their own security checklist in one of our member facilities.
Member support during COVID-19: We have consistently supported members during the COVID-19 crisis. In addition to regular intelligence-gathering on public health measures and EU funding opportunities, we developed a document reflecting the sector’s asks for reopening and recovery and held a number of meetings with Commission, Member State and MEP officials to socialise our position with them. Members can use that document in their own political engagement. Our safety subcommittee also developed detailed guidance for safe operations during COVID-19 restrictions.
Active contribution to EU tourism policy: In the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis, EU policy makers are seeking to transform Europe’s tourism sector, putting it on a more resilient, sustainable and digital footing. IAAPA, in consultation with members of the GR subcommittee developed a position and contributed to the public consultation on tourism’s transformation. We also regularly participate in tourism-related events, such as the European Tourism Forum and European Tourism Day, the European Commission’s flagship forums for the tourism sector. As part of our work on this, we managed to secure the presence of a Commission official working on tourism policy in the IAAPA Expo 2021. The official provided an update on funding opportunities for our sector and exchanged views with members.
Stakeholder relations: IAAPA is a member of the Network for the European Private Sector in Tourism (NET group), an informal network of representative trade associations from the private sector in European tourism. Membership provides IAAPA members with access to intelligence and a cost-efficient vehicle for lobbying, as NET members regularly bring their voices together to promote various issues of interest.
Mitigating regulatory risk: IAAPA is monitoring the review of the Machinery Directive and the new legislative proposal on General Product Safety. These pieces of legislation have potential implications for how amusement park equipment is placed on the market and IAAPA is working with safety experts to assess the risk and determine the best course of action.

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