2025 IDA Annual Conference Set to Illuminate Abu Dhabi

A Global Gathering of 7,000+ Financial Insurance Elites

ABU DHABI, UAE, Aug. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2025 International Dragon Award (IDA) Annual Conference will be held with grandeur from August 9 to 12, 2025 in Abu Dhabi, the dynamic capital of the United Arab Emirates and a globally renowned "City of Oil". This landmark event is set to convene over 7,000 delegates—including financial insurance elites, senior executives of insurance companies, and industry experts and scholars from across the world—to explore emerging trends, challenges and opportunities within the insurance industry.

In 1998, IMM International officially established the International Dragon Award (IDA), intending to set a fair and objective benchmark for the global insurance industry and to uphold the values of "Paragon, Perfection, Nobility". After over two decades of industry engagement, the IDA has garnered widespread acclaim and respect across the industry, establishing itself as an internationally admired honor among financial insurance practitioners. Today, a number of financial insurance institutions have incorporated IDA into their corporate recognition frameworks. By 2025, over 181,000 financial insurance elites from more than 250 insurance institutions across 17 countries and regions have earned the IDA distinction, including 585 IDA Life Members and 16 inductees into the prestigious IDA Hall of Fame. This year also sees 17 outstanding sales teams receiving the esteemed "IDA Hundred-Elite Team" title.

As a premier, high-caliber event of vital significance to the global insurance sector, the IDA Annual Conference celebrates the achievements of its members, while empowering financial insurance practitioners worldwide with cutting-edge industry insights, marketing expertise, and leadership philosophies. Since 2000, IMM International has hosted 24 editions of the conference in major cities across the globe—including Chiang Mai, Singapore, Seoul, Sydney, Kuala Lumpur, Dubai, Melbourne, Bangkok, and multiple cities in China. Its debut in Abu Dhabi in 2025 marks a significant milestone in the conference's global journey.

Centered on the theme "Devotion", this year's conference will unite over 120 senior executives from insurance companies, excellent sales agency leaders, top-tier sales agents, and experts and scholars from various fields globally. Featuring over 60 high-value, in-depth sharing sessions—including 12 main sessions, 43 breakout sessions, and 10 "International Finance Outlook Forum" sessions convening financial experts and senior executives from insurance companies—the event will offer a dynamic, open, and interdisciplinary platform for meaningful exchange of ideas, driving continued prosperity and development across the insurance industry.

IDA Grand Celebration: Thousands Rise to Claim their IDA Honor

As the global insurance industry navigates new challenges emerging in the 2025 volatile economic climate, a resilient cohort of outstanding insurance professionals has chosen to rise against the headwinds, ultimately earning the prestigious IDA honor with their exceptional performance and unwavering resolve.

As the highest tribute to the leading force of the industry, this conference has meticulously curated two signature events: "Honor Salute" and "Dragon Night". During these ceremonial sessions, more than 4,000 IDA members will stride along the Walk of Fame marked by "Paragon, Perfection, Nobility", and step proudly onto the award stage to celebrate a glorious moment shared by dedicated achievers.

Guided by the ideals of the IDA honor, these distinguished IDA honorees have diligently fulfilled the noble mission of serving 36 households each year. With remarkable professional expertise and selfless dedication, they have not only provided robust insurance protections for their clients, but also exemplified the highest standards of excellence within the insurance industry. The "Honor Salute" and "Dragon Night" award ceremonies celebrate their individual achievements and highlight the enduring value of their professionalism and services.

Among the many accolades, two hold particular distinction:

Contributing to Industry Legacy, Forging Shared Glory:
Official Announcement of Global Rankings for IDA Member Companies 

In 2024, the IDA released its Inaugural Official Announcement of Global Rankings for IDA Member Companies in Hong Kong, China, revealing key development trends and indicators of excellence within the global financial insurance industry. These insights provide invaluable guidance for financial insurance institutions and sales teams. For insurance institutions, the number of IDA members serves as a critical metric of productivity and quality. The presence of a greater number of IDA members within a financial insurance institution reflects its ability to evolve with the industry trends and maintain steady growth in overall performance & productivity, recruitment & training, and talent retention.

To further support industry advancement, the IDA Executive Committee will release the Official Announcement of 2025 Global Rankings for IDA Member Companies at the upcoming Abu Dhabi conference. Meanwhile, the IDA Data Analytics Expert Committee has been officially established, comprising distinguished insurance professionals appointed for their expertise in industry insights and trend analysis, and renowned professionalism and credibility. These experts will collaborate with the IDA Executive Committee to contribute meaningfully to the continued advancement and excellence of the financial insurance sector.

This year's official announcement also features the presentation of "IDA World Record" awards, designed to celebrate peak achievements and inspire financial insurance practitioners worldwide to benchmark against top performers, strive for continuous advancement and improvement, and ultimately create their own IDA records.

The Official Announcement of Global Rankings for IDA Member Companies embodies the mission and determination of IMM International and IDA to enhance the professional competency, image, and social standing of practitioners in the global financial insurance industry. It defines clear benchmarks for enduring excellence and sustainable growth, while offering financial insurance institutions valuable reference, guidance, and support in institutional mechanisms and product development—ultimately driving the global insurance industry's transformation toward high-quality development.

Moving forward, IDA will continue its steadfast commitment to fostering the prosperity, development, and advancement of the global financial insurance sector, partnering with leading institutions and exceptional professionals in their quest for unparalleled excellence.

** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **

2025 IDA Annual Conference Set to Illuminate Abu Dhabi

2025 IDA Annual Conference Set to Illuminate Abu Dhabi

ALULA, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Today marks the official opening of Desert X AlUla 2026, the landmark fourth edition of the international, open-air biennial exhibition. Arts AlUla, in collaboration with Desert X, welcomes visitors to experience a stellar line-up of Saudi and international multi-generational artists whose site-responsive earthworks, sculptures, and installations will engage in a powerful dialogue with the awe-inspiring landscapes and layered heritage of AlUla.

 

 

As a premier destination rich in ancient history and breathtaking nature, AlUla, located in Northwest Saudi Arabia, solidifies its position on the global stage as a dynamic, emerging land art destination with Desert X AlUla, the region's first public art biennale, and a key highlight of the AlUla Arts Festival.

The 2026 edition of Desert X AlUla brings together 11 acclaimed artists whose diverse works reflect a wide spectrum of ideas, materials, and traditions. From monumental kinetic sculpture to sound-based explorations above and below ground, each commission is deeply rooted in relationships to AlUla's distinctive environment, further cementing Desert X AlUla's reputation as a globally significant platform for site-responsive land art.

Desert X AlUla runs until February 28, 2026, as a cornerstone of the annual AlUla Arts Festival. Curated by Wejdan Reda, Zoé Whitley, with artistic direction by Neville Wakefield, and Raneem Farsi, its fourth edition explores 'Space Without Measure.' Inspired by Kahlil Gibran, the theme fosters contemplation of imagination within AlUla's natural settings. The exhibition, set in the desert canyons of AlUla, serves as a pre-opening programme for Wadi AlFann, offering a pivotal glimpse into AlUla's plans to create a permanent land art 'Valley of the Arts.'

Hamad Alhomiedan, Director of Arts & Creative Industries at the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU), said: "At Desert X AlUla 2026, audiences will engage with art that deeply converses with AlUla's unique landscapes and rich heritage. These compelling commissions highlight AlUla's dynamic transformation into a major global destination, where ancient and contemporary expressions converge. This exhibition is part of our broader revitalisation of AlUla as a culturally rich destination to live, work and visit and integral to positioning AlUla in the global dialogue of contemporary art and as a precursor to monumental projects like Wadi AlFann."

Participating artist/artworks are: 

• Sara Abdu, A Kingdom Where No One Dies: Contours of Resonance
• Mohammad Alfaraj, What was the Question Again?
• Mohammed AlSaleem, The Thorn, AlShuruf Unit, The Triangles, Flower Bud, and Al Ahilla (courtesy of Royal Commission for Riyadh City)
• Tarek Atoui, The Water Song
• Bahraini-Danish, Bloom 
• Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons, Imole Red 
• Agnes Denes, The Living Pyramid
• Ibrahim El-Salahi, Haraza Tree
• Basmah Felemban, Murmur of Pebbles
• Vibha Galhotra, Future Fables
• Héctor Zamora, Tar HyPar

For further information, please contact:
Sabrine.Shaw@bursonglobal.com
AlUlaArtsFestival@bursonglobal.com 

Multimedia gallery:
High-resolution photos of all 11 artists and their artworks can be found here.

About AlUla and Arts AlUla

Located 1,100 km from Riyadh, in North-West Saudi Arabia, AlUla is a place of extraordinary natural and human heritage. The vast area, covering 22,561km², includes a lush oasis valley, towering sandstone mountains and ancient cultural heritage sites dating back thousands of years to when the Lihyan and Nabataean kingdoms reigned.

The most well-known and recognised site in AlUla is Hegra, the principal southern city of the Nabataean Kingdom and Saudi Arabia's first UNESCO World Heritage Site. AlUla is also home to ancient Dadan, the capital of the Dadan and Lihyan Kingdoms and considered to be one of the most developed 1st millennium BCE cities of the Arabian Peninsula, and Jabal Ikmah, an open air library of hundreds of inscriptions and writings in many different languages. AlUla Old Town Village, a labyrinth of more than 900 mudbrick homes was developed from at least the 12th century and has been revitalised as the vibrant hub for visitors and residents.

The creation of Arts AlUla within The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU) is a commitment to crafting the next chapters in a millennia of artistic creation – celebrating cultural inheritance and shaping a future inspired by artists built be artists. The work of Arts AlUla seeks to preserve this legacy: fuse the old with the new; the local with the international, keeping the arts central to the spirit of AlUla as a place of extraordinary natural and human heritage.

Wadi AlFann, meaning 'Valley of the Arts,' will be a global cultural destination for land art, unveiling from 2028 onwards, where era-defining works by artists from around the world will be permanently sited in the monumental landscape of AlUla, the extraordinary desert region of north-west Saudi Arabia.

** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **

Desert X AlUla 2026: monumental land art exhibition opens in the ancient oasis of AlUla