Following a virtual meeting held today between of the Expo 2020 Steering Committee, which is made up of officials from the UAE as well as officials from some participating countries, it has been announced that the organisers of the much anticipated Expo 2020 Dubai are looking at "the possibility of a one year delay to the opening of Expo 2020", due to the ongoing global concerns over coronavirus COVID-19.
The event was scheduled to take place in October this year, starting on 20 October and running for 6 months until closing on 20 April 2021. With an anticipated 25 million visits over 6 months and an estimated 11 million international visitors from across the globe, the event is a showcase of culture, business, innovation and technology. A total of 192 countries have confirmed to take part.
The final decision will be made at a meeting of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), which awards the event held every five years, though it is not expected that they will go against the recommendation.
In a statement Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy, Minister of State for International Cooperation and Director General of Expo 2020 said “While they remain firmly committed to Expo 2020, many countries have been significantly impacted by COVID-19 and they have therefore expressed a need to postpone the opening of Expo 2020 Dubai by one year, to enable them to overcome this challenge."
HE Reem Al Hashimy continued "We supported the proposal to explore a one year postponement at today’s steering committee meeting".
"We look forward to welcoming the world, which we are certain will only come out of this pressing challenge stronger, and more resilient than it ever was."
No new dates have been suggested as yet.