Dubai shuttered Expo 2020 with a colorful closing ceremony punctuated by fireworks on Thursday, leaving a multi-billion dollar mini-city in the desert and heightened expectations for future hosts.
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, today said that Expo 2020 Dubai offers the opportunity of “a new beginning” for the UAE and the world.
In an audio message delivered at the closing ceremony of the mega global event, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid told the audience: “During the Expo 2020 Dubai journey, we portrayed to the world a different version of ingenuity that touched the hearts and minds of every member of society. Our sons and daughters have proven their ability to overcome unprecedented difficulties and challenges. And in every moment of this journey, we reflected the values of the UAE – values of affection and hospitality. Today is not the end of Expo 2020, but a new beginning.”
“The UAE and Dubai will continue, God willing, to be graceful and strong – and able, to Connect Minds and Create the Future with this exceptional government, and the leadership of my brother Mohamed bin Zayed,” he added.
Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, accompanied by Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, Chairman of Dubai Airports, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline and Group and Chairman of the Expo 2020 Dubai Higher Committee, attended the closing ceremony of Expo 2020 Dubai, held today at Al Wasl Square, the beating heart of the six-month global event. The ceremony saw the baton for World Expo being handed over to Osaka, Japan, which will host the next Expo in 2025.
The ceremony was also attended by Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Sports Council; Her Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairperson of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority; Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence and Commissioner-General of Expo 2020 Dubai; Reem Al Hashimy, Minister of State for International Cooperation and Director-General of Expo 2020 Dubai; and a number of officials.
Over six months, Expo 2020 Dubai brought together over 190 participating nations, including multilateral organisations and academic institutions, and millions of visitors under the event’s theme, ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’, to exchange new ideas and perspectives, inspire meaningful change and create a brighter future for all. The global event that opened in October 2021 made history as the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia (MEASA) region and the first to be hosted by an Arab nation.
The closing ceremony started with the UAE national anthem, followed by an address by Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence and Commissioner-General of Expo 2020 Dubai, in which he congratulated the UAE leadership on the exceptional success of Expo, which he said “will remain engraved proudly in the memory of history, and the world, as one of our young country’s many achievements.”
Sheikh Nahyan attributed the success of Expo to the remarkable efforts of its leadership team led by Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, as well as to Reem Al Hashimy and her entire team.
He also thanked the thousands of volunteers and the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) for their relentless efforts in presenting the magnificent event. He also highlighted the various events that took place at Expo 2020 Dubai during the six months of the event, including the celebration of the UAE’s Golden Jubilee. The UAE is looking forward to participating in Expo 2025 Osaka Kansai and sharing the unique and rich experiences gained from the organisation of the mega global event in Dubai, Sheikh Nahyan added.
Jai-chul Choi, President of the General Assembly of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) thanked the UAE leadership for its support for the success of the event. He also said that this is the first World Expo in which more than 190 countries participated with their own pavilions, which is a collective achievement and a demonstration of solidarity, fraternity and international coordination. “It has been made possible by the UAE’s dedication to hosting a transformational and unifying event, and by the commitment of the BIE, the Organiser and all participants to persevere in the delivery of this wonderful World Expo,” Choi said. “During this tumultuous period, Expo 2020 Dubai has been a beacon to remind us all that, to navigate these challenges, we must join together and work in unison.”
He also said participating countries, visitors and all those who have been part of Expo 2020 Dubai will take away essential lessons for the future based on their experiences at the event. “When the Expo ends and this site evolves into a new urban district, the enduring spirit of Expo 2020 Dubai will persist, adding new energy and ideas to the meaning of what a World Expo is. The impact of Expo 2020 Dubai will undoubtfully be woven into the Expo tapestry, an essential part of our shared global narrative,” Choi added.
Six months after the delayed opening of the $7 billion, purpose-built site, Christina Aguilera, Nora Jones and cellist Yo-Yo Ma performed at the LCD-lit Al Wasl Dome, Expo’s centerpiece, as pyrotechnics lit up the sprawling site.
Millions of people have flocked to Expo’s 192 country pavilions in its final days, pushing visit numbers over 23 million — not far off the 25 million targeted, despite the ongoing pandemic — and making it tough to find a taxi elsewhere in the city.
In 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit) heat, long queues have formed at the most popular attractions, including the falcon-themed United Arab Emirates pavilion and the Saudi Arabia building, a slanted slab that appears to hover in the air.
“It’s been a huge experience, it’s been really, really great,” said Abbas Masud, 66, a retired banker originally from Pakistan.
“I’ve done about 172 countries. I wanted to do all 192 but I don’t think I will be able to because it’s the last day. I feel a bit sad.”
Expo, housed on a circular site twice the size of Monaco, has been a point of pride for Dubai’s rulers and one of a number of projects aimed at grabbing world attention.
Dubai, the commercial heart of the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, is famously home to the world’s tallest building, the 830-metre (2,723 feet) Burj Khalifa.
In February, it opened a Museum of the Future — in the shape of a silver ellipse decorated with Arabic calligraphy — that promotions insisted was “the most beautiful building on earth”.
Expo, which started with the 1851 Great Exhibition in London and has since showcased innovations such as the telephone and microwave, now moves to Osaka in Japan for the 2025 edition on a man-made island.
“It’s clear that we have set a new bar here — it’s something I believe (Osaka) will look to aspire to,” said Dimitri Kerkentzes, secretary-general of the Bureau International des Expositions, according to UAE’s The National newspaper.
Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Novak Djokovic were among the sports stars to visit, along with Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the leaders of France, Brazil, Turkey and Morocco.
The site, with its canopied walkways and speakers playing soothing music, is now envisaged as a car-free “15-minute city”, with all parts accessible by foot or bicycle within a quarter of an hour.
Eighty percent of the structures will remain, including the self-powering ‘Sustainability’ pavilion and a giant water feature that gives the impression of water flowing upwards.
District 2020, as the Expo site will be known, is attempting to attract high-tech and digital companies to become a center for innovation.
“It was never an investment to host an Expo,” the show’s director-general Reem Al Hashimy told AFP in September.
“It was an investment to create a new city that is equal distance between Dubai and (UAE capital) Abu Dhabi and really the city of the future.
“That investment goes into a city to 2040, 2050 and beyond.”