The expo site ... to host the largest ever event in the Arab world.
Cynosure of the world!
01 November 2019
The countdown has now begun for Expo 2020 Dubai and the UAE came together on October 20 to mark One Year to Go until the ‘world’s greatest show’ raises its curtains, with spectacular events in all seven emirates celebrating the milestone in style and offering a tantalising taste of what’s to come at the mega event.
At 20:20 (8.20pm), all eyes turned to Burj Khalifa for a stunning LED show, inviting people and nations across the planet to ‘Be There’ for the show. Across the emirates, performances by 100 artists from 26 different nationalities highlighted the nation’s rich talent pool and multicultural modern society, as well as the global appeal of Expo 2020.
Some 192 countries around the globe are now preparing to participate in the largest event ever to be held in the Arab World, while work is now going full throttle at the Expo 2020 site as well as elsewhere in Dubai to host an audience of some 25 million visitors anticipated over the six-month-long festival.
Work is currently under way on building the site, the pavilions, residences and ancillary buildings as well as supporting infrastructure such as roads, bridges and the Dubai Metro Route 2020 line. And with sustainability built into the DNA of the Expo 2020 plan, most of the infrastructure, including the pavilions, are likely to be retained for future use.
Work on around 56 per cent of the 69 pavilions being tracked by construction database BNC Network are under construction while the remaining 44 per cent are in the pipeline, said a Khaleej Times report.
Some of the other major pavilions where the work is under way are those of Finland, Sweden, Belgium, India, Pakistan, Germany, the US, the UK, Oman, Netherlands, France, China, New Zealand and others.
The cumulative spend on infrastructure and other assets for the event is estimated to be Dh40.1 billion ($10.9 billion), according to a report prepared by Ernst & Young Middle East (Dubai Branch) (EY) solely for Expo Dubai 2020.
From 2013-31, Expo 2020 and its legacy are likely to contribute Dh122.6 billion gross value added (GVA) to the UAE’s economy, says the EY report.
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