Expo 2020 Dubai opened its doors last Friday . This first major event open to the public since the pandemic began plans to welcome millions of visitors – both on-site and virtual – by March 31, 2022.
Expo 2020 Dubai boasts of being the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East and North Africa region. The event is also the largest event of its kind ever held in the Arab world.
The overall theme of the exhibition is “Connecting minds, creating the future”. It aims to introduce new ideas and find solutions to global challenges.
Canada is participating
Canada is one of more than 190 countries and international organizations participating in the World Expo.
Its participation aims to showcase Canadian expertise in the fields of advanced technology, education and tourism. It also aims to showcase the richness and diversity of its culture.
Canada’s theme for Expo 2020, “The Future in Mind”, as well as its two sub-themes, “innovation” and “diversity”, are a call to celebrate human ingenuity.
“The theme we have chosen for Canada’s participation in Expo 2020 is inspired by our core values of diversity, inclusion, human rights and gender equality as the foundation for building a prosperous and inclusive nation,” said Global Affairs Canada (GAC) in a release
Expo 2020 Dubai as if you were there
Since October 1st, Canadians and all citizens of the world can experience Expo 2020 Dubai “as if they were there” thanks to a unique virtual experience created by the NFB on the website lavenirentete.ca.
The Canada Pavilion is reinterpreted online “through a poetic and immersive odyssey,” the NFB explains.
“Canada’s presence at Expo 2020 Dubai will demonstrate what many people around the world already know: Canada is a great place to do business, invest, educate, visit and immigrate,” said Mary Ng, Canada’s Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade.
CMA adds that Canada will also use its presence at Expo 2020 to strengthen its partnership with the United Arab Emirates, the region’s hub.
Reassuring health measures
The Government of Canada is reassured by the measures that have been put in place by the Government of the United Arab Emirates and the organizers of Expo 2020 to protect visitors and Canadians working at the exhibition site.
Visitors will be required to present a valid vaccination certificate issued by the relevant national authority or present a negative PCR test certificate taken within the previous 72 hours in order to access the Expo 2020 Dubai site.
Health measures related to COVID-19 also include thermal imaging cameras and disinfection stations throughout the exhibition site, as well as mandatory masking and social distancing.
Recall that the last two world’s fairs attracted 21.5 million visitors to Italy in 2015, and 73 million visitors to China in 2010.