Expo body agrees to propose one-year delay for Expo 2020 Dubai

The awarding body for World Expos has agreed to propose a one-year delay for Expo 2020 Dubai from October 1, 2021, to March 31 due to coronavirus and still keep "Expo 2020 Dubai" as the official name of the event, according to the Dubai-based

Khaleej Times

.

The move came after the Government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) formally requested the postponement of the World Expo 2020 Dubai in a letter addressed to the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) in early April.

The BIE said on Tuesday that under Article 28 of the Paris Convention of 1928, the new opening dates need the support from two thirds of Member States of the BIE, and therefore, a vote would be carried out remotely between April 24 and May 29 before making the proposal final.

"World Expos are collective endeavors that express the shared international goal of progress for all humankind. I am confident that when the time is right, Expo 2020 Dubai will constitute the best platform to build, with renewed optimism and hope, a better and brighter future for all," said Dimitri S. Kerkentzes, secretary general of the BIE.

As one of this year's most important international conventions, Expo 2020 Dubai, originally scheduled from October 20, 2020, to April 10, 2021, is the first World Expo in the Middle East and is expected to welcome more than 200 international participants, including a record 192 countries.

In response to coronavirus pandemic, many countries have adopted strict preventive policies, such as grounding flights, closing borders, and asking residents to self-quarantine. So far, a number of international activities, including Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, have been postponed or canceled.

(Cover image: The Sustainability Pavilion at the construction site of the Expo 2020 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, October 8, 2019. /AP)