The programme of the European Silk Road Summit in Budapest is complete! With 23 speakers from all over the world the 7th edition of this industry event is set to become a success.

The European Silk Road Summit, which is taking place from the 29 November to 1 December in Budapest, is Promedia’s anchor event talking about rail freight between Europe and Asia. Speakers and delegates come from Europe, Central Asia, China and even the US, making this one of the most international events in the industry.

See the complete programme of the event here, or a list of speakers here.

Budapest – this is where the business is

Promedia’s CEO, Arie van Dijk, is very excited about this years’ event and, in particular, is looking forward to “meeting people in the Hungarian logistical business”.

According to van Dijk, this year’s event is not only about Hungary, but also focuses on the Central and Eastern European region. “We are very active in the CEE” says van Dijk: “It is economically developing so rapidly and that is where the business is.”

The birth of the event

Van Dijk has been a part of the European Silk Road Summit since the event’s inception around 2017. At this time, the Silk Road was very exciting and new. “We wanted to be a part of it”, says van Dijk. It was an exotic topic that was drawing a lot of attention and the first European Silk Road Summit was a huge success because of this. In fact, the first event of the Silk Road is described by Promedia’s CEO as ‘buzzing’.

Initially, before his previous company was acquired by the Promedia group, van Dijk headed up a dutch version of the European Silk Road Summit and oversaw two dutch editions of the event. However, due to the international interest in this developing topic, van Dijk decided to make it an international one “because it’s really about getting the Silk Road community together and connected,” says van Dijk.

Still relevant despite the war

Of course, the New Silk Road does face challenges, the biggest of which is the Ukrainian War according to van Dijk. He says that the biggest change is the war in Eastern Europe and the developments going on there. Nevertheless, he is steadfast in his belief that the New Silk Road is “still a relevant route for sure”. Furthermore, developments and changes are sure to impact the Silk Road once the war eventually ends.

These challenges that the New Silk Road faces, along with topics revolving around innovation and the Middle Corridor, will be discussed at the 7th edition of the European Silk Road Summit: ‘All roads lead to Budapest’. “We are really looking forward to it,” says van Dijk.

European Silk Road Summit

Do you want to attend the 7th edition of the European Silk Road Summit in Budapest? Registration is still open. Note that dinner and site visit seats run out closer to the date, so timely registration is recommended.