Malta will host its largest ever convention between August and September, when 5,000 delegates will come here for a seven-day event organised by Oriflame Cosmetics of Sweden, Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism Mario de Marco said today.

The conference will be held between August 29 and September 4.

"This is good news, this conference means 35,000 bed nights for Malta," Dr de Marco said.

"It not only gives us a sense of pride that our country was chosen to organise such a gathering, but it is also a boost to our tourism industry, in particular to the conference and incentive segment," he added.

The delegates will be staying in 13 hotels in what conference organisers said was a good balance for Malta between tourists who came here for the sun and the sea and those who came here on conference travel.

This particular week was chosen because it comes at the tail end of the peak tourism season and just before the normal 'conference travel season' starts.

The organisation of the conference is being handled by On Site Malta, a destination management company. Most of the convention's events will be held on the Granaries in Floriana.

Dr de Marco said that 2009 had been a difficult year for the tourism industry with the conference and incentive segment feeling the crunch more than other sectors because of the international economic and financial crisis.

The government, he recalled, had launched a scheme to support this sector, and as a result, 26 conferences were attracted to Malta - 10 were held last year, 13 were being held this year, two would be held in 2011 and one in 2012. They will account for 10,300 delegates or about 31,000 guest nights.