Dubai, UAE on course for Expo 2020

Abu Dhabi, July 2 (IANS/WAM) In the coming four years, a series of mega projects will reinvigorate the Dubai economy, laying the groundwork for, and building the infrastructure necessary to host Expo 2020, according to a UAE daily.

The Expo 2020 site, strategically located between Dubai and Abu Dhabi, will be transformed into a model of progress, technology and national pride as the UAE welcomes the world for the six-month exposition.

"But make no mistake, the success of the Expo, and the reputation of Dubai and the UAE, can only be guaranteed and achieved by in-depth planning, large-scale preparation and mountains of hard work," the daily said in an editorial.

"It's going to take inspiration and perspiration to turn the site into all that is envisaged, and the UAE has never shirked such challenges," the Gulf News said on Saturday.

The Expo represents a golden opportunity for corporations and businesses to get involved.

For those who said the low price of oil is stalling economic growth here, they forget the resilience of the UAE, the determination of its people and the resolute march of progress that is ingrained in all here, it said.

Last week, Dubai awarded a $10.6 billion contract to a global consortium to build a new Metro line to the Expo site and onwards to Al Maktoum International Airport.

The 2020 Line will add 15 km to the existing network and will provide a strategic link between the city and the Expo site.

The awarding of this project is but the first of many that will take place in the coming weeks.

It is a sign that the emirate, and the UAE as a whole, is determined to succeed. Yes, there may be buffeting winds, but this ship is sturdy and on course, the paper concluded.

--IANS/WAM

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