Dubai
The US, Austria, Malaysia, and Mexico confirmed on Thursday they will be participating in the Expo 2020 in Dubai, bringing the total number of participating countries to around 150.
The figure is currently about 30 countries short of what organisers hope to attract to participate in the mega-event happening in three years, but organisers said they were on track to meet that target of 180 countries participating.
The confirmation from the four new countries came on Thursday during the International Participants Meeting, which was held in Dubai and that brought together 500 senior representatives from various countries.
During the meeting, organisers briefed attendees on the progress of construction on the Expo site, marketing plans, and other updates. Organisers said construction of the Expo site has “progressed tremendously,” over the past 18 months, and that the Expo 2020 event was moving “firmly and swiftly form mission to reality.”
Delegates attending the meeting will be taken on a tour of the Expo site on Friday.
Other countries that announced they will participate in the Expo in 2020 include Bangladesh, Belarus, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Saint Lucia, and Somalia. They will join a list of other countries that had earlier confirmed their participation including the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Chile, Indonesia, and Tunisia.
The meeting was attended by Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
