The value of Expo-related projects already underway is estimated at almost £30 billion.
This extraordinary figure exists because the site on which the venue is being built was just a few years ago, sand. Differing to many countries, which use Expo to boost business and investment within a city, the UAE is using Expo to launch a city. £12.15 billion has been allocated to infrastructure and transport. £9.22 billion on housing, and a further £7.68 billion on hotels and theme parks. The most notable investment is the £5.5 billion expansion of Al Maktoum International Airport, which when complete will handle 160 million travellers per year (which is approximately double the 2017 amount handled by Dubai International, the world’s busiest airport).
The Dubai Chamber of Commerce expects the 6 month event to attract some 300,000 visitors per day, half of which will arrive from abroad. It also suggests the event will create a 300,000 new jobs. DP World has said that the number of items it currently handles will double, to 100 million packages, by 2020.
The real opportunity for Dubai however is the long-term impact the event will have. Expo has its own audience and the event in 2020 will expose Dubai to it. The UAE constantly advertises itself as a country wishing to attract talent and UK talent and the UAE have a long history. UK firms wishing to capitalise on Expo should make enquiries now, waiting for the event to start may mean first mover advantage has been lost. This isn’t our first article about the event, and we are by no means the only company talking about it. Expo 2020 Dubai represents a huge opportunity.
The Department for International Trade is currently hosting events in major UK cities looking for the next award winning designer of a UK pavilion. The team have uploaded a webinar recording which details everything a company needs to know should it wish to submit an entry. The UK pavillion in Astana in 2017 was an award winning entry, Expo 2015’s ‘The Hive’ has won 20 awards to date. The bar is set high and the exposure received is equally so.
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