New dates announced for World Expo Dubai

World Expo 2020, Dubai has been postponed to October next year in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic, the chairman of the event's organising committee said.

The decision came after a two-third majority of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) member states voted in favour of postponing the expo by one year which will now run from October 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022, he said on Monday.

This will allow the World Expo to focus on a collective desire for new thinking to identify solutions to some of the greatest challenges of our time, said Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Expo 2020 Dubai Higher Committee.

We welcome the decision of BIE member states to support the delay of Expo 2020 Dubai by one year. We are thankful to member states for their continued commitment to contributing to a World Expo in Dubai that will play a pivotal role in shaping our post-pandemic world at a time when it will be most needed, he said.

Dimitri S Kerkentzes, Secretary General of the BIE, said, I applaud the swift response by BIE Member States. Their support for the postponement of Expo 2020 Dubai -- which will be formally approved on 29 May -- is a renewed sign of solidarity and demonstrates the shared will to work together in creating the future.

The first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region, and largest ever event to take place in the Arab world, Expo 2020 will welcome 192 countries, plus businesses, multilateral organizations and educational establishments.