Expo 2027 Belgrade an economic catalyst for the Western Balkans

Expo 2027 Belgrade is poised to become a powerful catalyst for economic transformation across the Western Balkans. More than a global exhibition, it is an investment magnet that will boost infrastructure, attract international investors, and accelerate tourism. New hotels, transport upgrades, and cultural revitalization will prepare the region for millions of visitors, while knowledge transfer and job creation will strengthen the local economy. The Expo’s dedicated business programme, including a Global Business Summit and corporate participants’ zone, will provide a platform for forging partnerships and supporting startups, shaping a lasting legacy of growth, innovation, and regional cooperation for decades ahead.

Marko Čadež, President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, says why Expo 2027 Belgrade opens a new chapter in economic development for Serbia and the region. Excerpts from an interview:

EXPO 2027 Belgrade is an investment in the future - in infrastructure, business and international image - and an introduction to a new chapter in the economic development of Serbia and the entire region. It will open up new perspectives - opportunities for growth, development, raising performance and competitiveness and accelerate the economic dynamics of the Serbian, Western Balkans and the economies of the wider region of Southeast Europe.

All industries will have either direct or indirect benefits from investing in the Expo and the organisation of the world exhibition. Expo has already brought and will bring jobs to companies from all industries - from construction and about thirty industries involved in construction projects - manufacturers of machinery and equipment, electronics and lighting, furniture and textiles, security solutions, through the food and beverage industry to transport and logistics, tourism and hospitality, the IT sector, the creative and sports and entertainment industries... In all stages of the organisation and implementation of the exhibition - from the preparation and construction of the Expo complex, during the three months of the exhibition, as well as after the end of the exhibition, when we expect the greatest economic effects through the inflow of new foreign investments.

I am convinced that those who come to the Expo and get to know Serbia as their next investment destination, technological and innovation hub will return, start their businesses here, do business with the neighboring countries and the world and expand their business operations throughout the region. This will have a chain economic effect on the wider region, where around one million companies operate.

In addition, the Belgrade Expo was designed not as a project just for the three months that the exhibition will last, but with a long-term plan for the use of physical and business infrastructure, facilities and programs. As part of that heritage, for example, there will be a new, modern fair, the largest one in Southeast Europe, which will turn Belgrade into a European fair and congress center, with all the benefits that industry brings to the country and the region.

After substantial state investments in the construction of the Expo complex, supporting facilities and infrastructure and private ones, for example in new hotels, as part of the preparation for the event, there is a wide range of sectors in which Serbia has the potential for investment after the Expo when we expect a strong wave of foreign investments, especially high-tech ones. In the basic sectors - such as agriculture-food and energy, primarily in the segment of renewable sources, in the production capacities of the processing industry, in the service sector - from real estate, logistics and transport, tourism to ICT, artificial intelligence and smart solutions.

Serbia is an ideal destination for companies from more distant countries that, in order to get closer to European customers and ensure supply chains, must have production in Europe. They already recognize Serbia as a place for either independent or joint investments with our companies: as a production base from which, due to free trade agreements, except in the EU, they will export duty-free to markets around the world with a total of 2.8 billion potential customers, as well as a technology hub for research and development of joint products for European and world markets. In addition, they will be largely supported by Serbian ICT, as the fastest growing sector of the Serbian economy where software is the No. 1 export product, a sector of reliable innovative companies and creative people.

As part of the preparation for the world exhibition, Serbia has also launched the national investment program “Leap into the Future” - more than three hundred infrastructure and other development projects aimed at further improving the infrastructure and, at a time of anemic economic growth in the EU, maintaining the vitality of the domestic economy by securing the jobs of companies from a number of industries. This will enable us, when a more substantial recovery of the European economy begins, to continue with high growth rates, which, according to the estimated potential, could be between 6 and 7 percent per year.

In addition to strengthening our position as a regional logistics hub in southeastern Europe, and bringing more even development within the country - making smaller towns in the interior more attractive for living and investing, these projects also have a greater regional dimension, and many are part of the EU Growth Plan for the Western Balkans. When we build roads, railways, gas pipelines or power grids, we do so in order to further improve the quality of our otherwise functional infrastructure, as one of the key prerequisites for better operations of domestic companies and attracting foreign investments, as well as to better connect with the neighboring countries and contribute to the complete integration of Serbia and the Western Balkans into the transport system of the European Union.

Although at first glance it is thematically related to games - music and sports, the EXPO 2027 exhibition in Belgrade has a pronounced business dimension. As a global business platform that provides unimaginable opportunities not only for the promotion of our products, companies, their export offer, investment projects and technological innovations, but also for business networking of local companies with regional and global ones. Companies from all over the world that will come to Belgrade for Expo will have the opportunity to see the potential of the Western Balkans in one place and establish contacts with our companies, as well as companies from other participating countries. In this sense, Expo will not be an exhibition space only, but also a business incubator where new jobs are created, investments and long-term partnerships are negotiated. The presence of global leaders from industry, finance and new technologies will further boost the attractiveness of the region and strengthen its reputation as a promising investment destination.

In addition to the development of the standard business programme, which includes the Global Business Summit, thematic forums and conferences in the period of three months of Belgrade Expo, along with the participation of representatives of the business community - from large companies to startups, governments, state institutions, business associations, academic and scientific research corps, national and company presentations, B2B meetings of businessmen, visits to foreign local companies throughout Serbia, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, as a national business association, together with the company Expo, partners from the region and the world, is already working hard to create a content that could be called programme plus. Special events and projects that we are launching and will implement within and on the margins of Expo in order to provide companies from the country, region and the world with as many opportunities as possible to connect, discover new opportunities for cooperation, jointly find responses to global challenges and shape the future together. It is our desire that these events remain a legacy of Expo, that they continue and are organized in the years after the exhibition ends, and that they provide new opportunities for the business community.

All the more so, since at the recently held world’s largest technology fair in Dubai, Gitex Global announced to the international business, technology and innovation community its decision that Belgrade, in 2027 within Expo and in the years after Expo, will host the Gitex AI Serbia event. The arrival of Gitex in Serbia, and the fact that we are becoming part of the Gitex family, is a great recognition and an even greater opportunity for Serbia. It positions the country as one of the new global technology and innovation centers, providing immense opportunities to gather in Belgrade each year all those who matter in the world of technology, software and hardware, and to attract their investments. Because what the Olympics are in sports, Gitex is in the technological world.

In addition to it, by obtaining a license, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia has officially become part of the World Trade Centers Association - a global network of more than 300 interconnected world trade centers in nearly a hundred countries. By EXPO, we intend to establish the World Trade Center Belgrade, which would be in the role of organizing international bilateral meetings, business delegation meetings, business forums during and after the exhibition ….

The experience from the world exhibition Expo Dubai 2020, which our partners from the UAE selflessly share with us, is highly valuable to us in the organization of the EXPO 2027 Belgrade business programme. From Expo Dubai, we also bring our own experience in organizing the Business Hub of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia in the Dubai South Free Zone where during all six months of the world exhibition we provided complete technical, logistical and communication support to our businessmen, as well as to Emirati companies from the entire Gulf and the world interested in cooperation with Serbian companies.

No matter how important Expo is for the economy as a whole and large, already established companies, I am convinced that the arrival of the world in Serbia and Belgrade, at an event where 125 countries have already confirmed their participation and where more than four million visitors are expected, actually represents the greatest chance for those smaller companies, startups and entrepreneurs, most of whom are not able to get jobs on such projects in the world and do not often have the opportunity to present themselves to the world on a big stage. Expo in Belgrade is their window to the world - a great opportunity for them to gain references at home and present themselves to global investors, potential partners, and the media.

At general and specialised events, as Gitex Expo Edition 2027 will be, and through special and innovation-dedicated programmes and events, young companies are going to be in a position to present their ideas as a response to contemporary challenges in the fields of new technologies, smart solutions, sustainable development, as well as to promote their products, services and capacities, draw the attention of international investors and enter the global stage. Networking with global companies will also bring them knowledge, mentoring and capital - partners for expanding their business models. It will be a milestone for many individual companies and will further encourage the development of the local innovative startup ecosystem, which has experienced exponential growth in recent years.

Expo 2027 is hosted by Serbia and Belgrade, but in fact it is essentially a regional project - a chance for the entire Western Balkans to present itself to the world as a reliable partner - both economically and politically. To show a new face of the region that has turned from a region of conflicts into a region of success, which people will not leave and where investors, customers, experts will come. After Expo, I believe, more than ever.

I am confident that these visible economic effects of Expo for all Western Balkan economies, companies and citizens will further contribute to the awareness of the importance of stronger regional connections and the significance of a joint appearance before the world - before decision makers, investors, customers, and tourists. As one region, one economy - a unique economic space with nearly 20 million potential consumers and common development ambitions. This will contribute to political stability and strengthening the mutual trust as proof of our readiness and maturity for full access to European and global trends.