Dubai Expo organizers ‘confident’ of hitting 2020 deadline

A computer-generated handout image released by UAE News Agency (WAM) shows architect Santiago Calatrava’s design for the UAE Pavilion for Dubai World Expo 2020 which was selected following a seven-month design competition. (AFP)

• Khosla said the target is to finish site construction by October this year, giving participating countries exactly one year to build their own stands and pavilions
• 192 countries have already confirmed their participation at the global event

DUBAI: Organizers of the Expo 2020 set to take place in Dubai are “confident” and “positive” they will open the site on time, an official said on Sunday.
The Expo, held on a vast new site in the south of the UAE city, is due to open in October next year.
“We just have roughly less than 18 months before the Expo, and we have to open the gates … A delay is not an option,” said Sanjive Khosla, deputy chief visitor experience officer at Expo 2020.
Khosla said the target is to finish site construction by October this year, giving participating countries exactly one year to build their own stands and pavilions.
“This is the first time that an expo is taking place where every country has its own pavilion. This has never happened before. Previously what would happen is that certain countries would be put together under one pavilion. This time, we have guaranteed every single country a space,” Khosla told Arab News on the sidelines of the Arabian Travel Market at the Dubai World Trade Center.
At the time of writing, 192 countries have already confirmed their participation at the global event — estimated to attract 25 million visitors — with some countries having already starting construction work.
“Some of the countries have already started building. Those ones who are ready, we are giving them access to their plots. Germany was the last one that broke ground, Saudi Arabia has also already broken ground. So quite a few have already started,” Khosla said.
While preparations for the Expo are on track, Khosla said the real payoff of the event “is in the legacy,” something where some past expos have struggled.
“In the legacy phase, Expo 2020 will become something called District 2020, which will be a mixed-use commercial and residential district. There will be free zones that will focus on key sectors.
“We anticipate this to be a really thriving location in Dubai, supported by the metro station, supported by Dubai Exhibition Center, and most importantly the new airport.”
A recent independent report by global consultancy firm EY showed that the Expo 2020 will contribute a total of $33.4 billion between 2013 and 2031, which is 1.5 percent of the country’s GDP.
Around 905,200 full-time equivalent (FTE) job years across the UAE will be supported by the Expo, the report showed.
When asked of the UAE’s plans in maintaining investments post-Expo, Khosla said: “We are in the process of working on the whole framework of incentives and regulations which will make it attractive for investors and companies to set up in District 2020.”
He adding that further details are likely to be announced in the coming months.