Dubai Expo 2020 – Benefits and Opportunities for Global Business

Dubai (United Arab Emirates) earned the right to stage the Dubai Expo 2020. This is the first-ever exposition that will be conducted in the Middle East and North Africa as well as South Asia or MENA/SA region. The city of Dubai earned the privilege to host this exposition in November of 2020. The Bureau International des Expositions chose Dubai over other urban hubs like Sao Paulo in Brazil, Ekaterinburg in the Russian Federation and Izmir in Turkey. This bureau is made up of 167 member-states that supervises selection and organization of World Expos.

Hussain Nasser Lootah (Dubai Municipality Director General) said they own the biggest research laboratory in this region and find new technologies and materials for the construction phase. In fact, the Jumeirah Lake Towers (the highest commercial building constructed in Dubai) was christened "Burj 2020" because of the Dubai Expo 2020. The Exposition’s Higher Preparatory Committee delivered its first ceremonial address to the event’s governing body. State Minister and task force member Reem Al Hashemi described the activity as a platform to continue executing the UAE’s visionary leadership surrounding connectivity, mobility, economic prospects, and sustainable practices as the support of today’s inter-reliant world.

Infrastructure

Staging of the international trade fair and all preparations leading will create approximately 277,000 new jobs in the Emirates and infuse almost $40 billion into its economy. Some 25 up to 100 million of foreign tourists are also expected for the six-month Dubai Expo 2020.

By tradition, these global commercial events spur investments in infrastructure in the host city. The case of Dubai should not be any different. For example, China spent $40 billion in developing and sustaining public services in Shanghai earlier than the 2010 expo. Six years before the event, the government constructed six brand-new metropolitan lines, highways, tunnels, viaducts, and high-speed rail network as preparation for the prestigious exhibition. The plans of Dubai are said to be more advanced as event organizers want the whole world to perceive the UAE as ultramodern and pioneering.

According to the senior editor at the Economics Intelligent Unit (Middle East and Africa) looks forward to positive mass media exposure worldwide as well. The the Dubai Expo 2020 is an opportunity to project the Emirates as a vital player in the international market that is open for global enterprise. It was reported that Dubai municipality will earmark $9 billion for implementation of its plans. Capital expenditures will be allocated to build urban-wide infrastructure. Once plans come to reality and the expo starts in 2020, the Dubai Metro will be 110 kilometers long. The Green Line will be lengthened by 20.6 kilometers while the Red Line by another 3.5 kilometers. Another 15 kilometers will be constructed from Jebel Ali to the exposition site close to the Al Maktoum International Airport.

Economic Benefits

Dubai has started to experience economic benefits of winning the right to host the World Expo 2020. Right after the announcement, there was a four percent increase in UAE’s stock market index. It was the first time that said index surpassed the 3000-point mark. The minimum of 25 million visitors during the six-month trade fair are projected to pour money into the country’s economy through hotels, transportation, communications, restaurants, shopping malls and entertainment venues. More importantly, it will produce a surge of Gross Domestic Product to AED89 billion or £14.4 billion in additional earnings.

Greater than before tourist arrivals and growth in investor confidence are considered the winning combination for the retail, hotel and leisure industries. Hotel occupancy is likely to climb up dramatically during the course of the expo which means proprietors and developers will experience substantial hikes in profits. The World Expo 2020 will ultimately reap lasting benefits for Dubai and the United Arab Emirates.

There are five major industries that will gain from Dubai hosting the trade event Expo 2020, based on the latest report authorized by the Federal Authority of Human Resources and undertaken by The Talent Enterprise to evaluate human capital opportunities from this endeavor. These are hospitality, retail, transportation, banking and finance, real estate, and infrastructure. It was also forecasted that there will be considerable progress in entrepreneurial businesses along with the creation of small and medium enterprises. Another recent report made by Standard Chartered disclosed that some 300,000 direct jobs and more or less one million indirect occupations will be created in the country by 2020.

Almost 90 percent of the jobs available will of course be in the travel and tourism industry. These job opportunities are expected to arise sometime from 2018 until 2021.

The report also predicted skills in engineering, structural design or architecture, urban planning, infrastructure development, and customer service will have the highest demand during preparations for this prominent international event. It is eventually seen as another gigantic leap forward for this highly-developed city in the Middle East.