The Economic Observatory of Meeting Tourism of the Argentine Republic (OETR Argentina) was created in 2010 within the framework of the technical assistance agreement between the National Secretariat of Tourism (SECTUR), the Argentine Association of Organizers and Suppliers of Exhibitions, Congresses, Events and Convention Bureaus (AOCA) and the School of Economic Sciences of the University of Buenos Aires (FCE-UBA), in order to have a permanent professional monitoring system of the main indicators of Meeting Tourism of the Argentine Republic (OETR Argentina), Events and Convention Bureaus (AOCA) and the Faculty of Economic Sciences of the University of Buenos Aires (FCE-UBA), in order to have a permanent professional monitoring system of the main indicators of Meeting Tourism in the country, through the collection, processing and analysis of statistical information on the supply and demand of the segment and its economic impact.

It is based on a collaborative work model through a network of local technical referents (from provinces and municipalities) in charge of the survey for the collection of information and its subsequent uploading into a single centralized database.

OETR Argentina studies both the meetings held in the country and the tourists who attend:

• The meetings survey seeks to identify the events that are grouped into four categories: Congresses and Conventions (C&C), Fairs and Exhibitions (F&E), International Sports Events (EDI) and Incentives (INC).
• The demand study is based on surveys of tourists attending meetings in order to learn about their profile, their behavior and their expenditures.

According to the definition of the World Tourism Organization, “meeting” is a general term that refers to the meeting of a number of people in a place with the objective of organizing or carrying out a specific activity.

The Congresses and Conventions (C&C) categories group meetings of people to discuss issues previously agreed. These meetings can be conferences, congresses, conventions, meetings, forums, conferences, seminars and symposiums.

The fairs and exhibitions (F&E) are commercial and/or promotional meetings. Within this category are the workshops.

International Sports Events (EDI) summon athletes from different countries to participate in a tournament or competition that takes place for over more than one day. These events take place regularly and their headquarters rotates through different countries.

The incentives (INC) are an instrument of the motivation strategy that companies use to stimulate the performance of their staff.