FIMAR closes its 13th edition with the support of a loyal public connected to the promotion of the blue economy and sea culture

 

The songs of the band Los Coquillos and a street parade that became a magnet for smartphone cameras enlivened the final day of FIMAR 2024 at the Sanapú Wharf. It was a very busy morning, marking the close of the International Sea Fair 's thirteenth edition. The event, which attracted over 15.000 visitors in three days and saw intense activity from both local and international attendees around the fifty or so companies present and the 80 stands set up throughout the venue, represents a further boost to the development of the blue economy . It also confirms a genuine maritime culture as an integral part of the city's and the island's identity.

 

FIMAR is an event promoted by the Cabildo of Gran Canaria , the City Council of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the Port Authority of Las Palmas , and organized by the City Council of the Sea and Infecar, Feria de Gran Canaria.

 

 

The Councillor for Economic Development, Industry, Trade and Crafts of the Gran Canaria Island Council, Minerva Alonso , stated at the close of this edition of FIMAR that this event "is now a benchmark for the blue economy sector in Gran Canaria. We are seeing," she added, "that the impact of the fair is growing, also outside the island, and that is very important to consolidate our plan to diversify the island's economy."

 

"At FIMAR," Alonso stressed, "we can learn first-hand about the current development of the business fabric of the blue economy on the Island. In the marine and maritime sector we have the presence of the Canary Islands Maritime Cluster, which in recent years has become a benchmark, and we see how activities such as underwater services continue to gain weight. Port services, Nautical, even in the fashion section, or, in general, activities linked to the sea offer us very solid arguments to continue betting. by the sector". 

 

 

 

The island councilor highlighted that "the involvement of the city and the Port is very important to continue promoting the blue economy, specialized training, and business development integrated with our sustainable Island project," and thanked all the collaborating entities for their support. , "which is growing," as well as the Navy and the State security forces and bodies.  

 

The Councillor for Employment and Local Development, Tourism and Maritime City of the Las Palmas de Gran Canaria City Council, Pedro Quevedo , stated that today "we can congratulate ourselves on enjoying a well-established event that reinforces the promotion of maritime culture in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria: a free event for the public. We are a Maritime City, and I believe that the fair is a true reflection of our identity."

 

"The blue economy is a sector in which we have been focusing for some time in the city, with the promotion of activities linked to sustainable tourism, but, as we are a city that receives tourists and not a tourist city, it is not Likewise, the economic impulse around the sea takes on an even greater dimension that is more appropriate to what we want and pursue," Quevedo explained. 

 

"We see it at the fair with the bustle of activity around Nautical, and we also see it with all the port services present at FIMAR. With special mention for the Canary Islands Maritime Cluster," he added. The mayor of the capital of Gran Canaria noted the weight that "academic institutions and entities focused on training" have had in FIMAR. And he recalled that "this year we have had Viana do Castelo as a guest city, with a professional meeting prior to FIMAR that "continues to position us as a reference city for the development of economic activity linked to the sea."  

 

 

The president of the Port Authority of Las Palmas, Beatriz Calzada , noted that "we are very pleased with how this edition of FIMAR has unfolded. We believe it has been a resounding success in terms of participation, the number of companies that wanted to join the fair, but above all, the number of people who came to our dock over these three days to learn about the excellent work of these companies linked to the port and maritime sectors. It is important that people are aware of this, and this fair provides them with that opportunity."

 

The president of the Port made special mention of the FIMAR location. "We believe," he indicated, "that the location of the fair this year has been a success, as we at the Port Authority value it, because it has given us the opportunity to publicize our docks: the Wilson Dock, the Sanapú Dock, which "They are going to be the axis of this great Port-City project, in which we are very excited." "This," he remarked, "is the space that we want to open to citizens, and therefore, this fair has been quite a preview. The people who have come to our stand have been able to see all these ideas, in something that we hope that in what is not too long it will become a great reality.

 

"Another resounding success," Calzada added, have been the boat trips, with a walk through our inland waters, which I believe have become one of the great attractions of this fair, because in this way the citizens have been able to get to know our Port of a totally different way, which is not usually common. From the sea, it has been possible to offer a perspective on the importance of the Port." 

 

Three days of entertainment in Sanapú

 

The Coquillos were in charge of putting the finishing touch to this edition of FIMAR, which would definitively close its doors at 15:00 p.m. this Sunday, June 9. Three days of large influx of public at the Sanapú Pier are behind us, on the first occasion in which this space hosts the fair. 

 

 

The 50 companies present at the event have been the main protagonists of these days, in which the public has been able to enjoy the contents exhibited in their eighty stands: commercial firms, public and private entities and academic institutions linked to research around to the oceans have constituted an extensive exhibition offer for the numerous local and foreign visitors who have come to FIMAR, in a new demonstration of the bustling of the blue economy in the city and the Island. 

 

The International Sea Fair has also coincided with the celebration of World Oceans Day , this Saturday, June 8: an event that fits perfectly into the philosophy of the fair, built with an important educational vocation around the scientific knowledge accumulated around the oceans.

 

In this sense, the public has been able to freely access around thirty talks and presentations on content such as climate change, ocean currents, microplastics and oceanographic research, among others, with a large presence of experts linked to the University. of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the Canary Islands Oceanic Platform, RedPROMAR or even the Association of Maritime Collectors of the Canary Islands. 

 

 

 

This activity has served as a perfect complement to the commercial offer of companies in the Nautical, fashion, marine and maritime sector and port services, in addition to the presentation of their activity by entities such as the Navy, Maritime Rescue or the civil Guard. 

 

The entire world of the sea, in fact, has been present at FIMAR 2024, which has once again offered boat trips through the interior of the Port, and various demonstrations of sports and navigation activities on the sheet of water of Sanapú. 

 

The combination of all this offer, which has included educational activities aimed at younger audiences, a children's area and a gastronomic area with a large presence of seafood, has turned FIMAR into one of the great events at the end of this spring. Once again, with broad popular support.