From Belarus with love

Forest of Future Technologies: how our country surprises visitors at the World Expo 2020 in Dubai

The World Expo 2020 has opened in Dubai. It will last until March 31st, 2022, under the slogan ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’. More than 190 states are taking part in the event. For 182 days, the countries will showcase the latest developments, scientific achievements, export and tourism opportunities, as well as talk about their history, national culture and traditions.

There is lots to see

To begin with, we note that the world exhibition (or Expo) is one of the largest forums and events of the exhibition industry on the planet, where the participating countries present their latest inventions and technologies, as well as the most progressive achievements. Last year, it did not take place due to the emergence of a new global challenge for all mankind: the COVID-19 pandemic. The exposition was moved to the current year. Countries had more time to prepare their stands and surprise visitors. Expo exhibitions have been held every five years since 1851. The current one in Dubai was the first in such a format in the region of the Middle East, Africa and South Asia.
The official site for the Expo 2020 exhibition centre is the new Dubai Trade Centre with an area of 438 hectares. The number of visitors is expected to reach 25 million, with about 70 percent from foreign countries.

There is lots on offer

In this largest event in the exhibition industry, our country is represented by the National Exposition of the Republic of Belarus with its own pavilion with an area of more than 1,400sq.m. 
Yevgenia Komarova, Head of the International Co-operation Department of the National Marketing Centre, noted, “The Belarusian delegation was headed by the General Commissioner of Section for Belarus — First Deputy Foreign Minister of Belarus, Aleksandr Guryanov. The opening ceremony of the Belarusian pavilion was attended by the Ambassador of the Republic of Belarus to the United Arab Emirates, Andrei Luchenok, alongside heads of the national pavilions of Moldova, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Luxembourg, Monaco and others. Within the framework of the ceremony, the first agreement on media co-operation was signed between the pavilion of Belarus and Russian Emirates Publishing & Advertising.” 
On the first day of the event, the Belarus pavilion was visited by over 4,700 people.
The theme of the Belarusian stand at Expo 2020 is Forest of Future Technologies. It reveals to visitors that Belarus is not only a country with rich natural resources, but also a high level of human development, which is the basis for creating innovative products. The pavilion route is built on the concept of three ‘I’s standing for ‘Innovation. Investments. Individual’. Visitors will be able to get to know Belarus better, as well as learn about the investment and innovation potential of our country. In order to make our pavilion as memorable as possible, the latest technologies have been used: interactive walls, virtual reality glasses, holographic images, etc. Moreover, special video content has been prepared about the originality and colour of Belarusian culture, its natural resources and artistic heritage.

Focus on business

The main emphasis in the pavilion is placed in the business area, where our enterprises of the petrochemical branch, industry, leading universities of the country, scientific institutes and organisations present their capabilities and potential, said Valery Sadokho, Director of the National Marketing Centre.
“In this zone, visitors will be able to see a 4D bioprinter, ‘Busel M40’ unmanned aerial vehicle, ‘TurboSfera’ energy-saving turbine generator unit and much more. In addition, visitors will get acquainted with the latest Belarusian IT-developments in the field of medicine, agriculture and education,” he said.  Days for showcasing the Vitebsk Region have already taken place as part of the exhibition while the Days of Minsk will take place in early November. The Minsk Region exhibitions are planned for December, as are the presentation of the economic potential of Belgospishcheprom and Belneftekhim concerns. Next year, presentations of the Brest, Grodno, Mogilev and Gomel regions will be held.
Celebration of the National Day of the Republic of Belarus at the world forum will take place on November 22nd. The Belarusian Investment Forum is expected to take place at the same time. The main attention of the Arab side — both government and business — will be drawn to our country.
The delegation of the Chinese pavilion and the delegation of the Syrian Arab Republic have already visited the pavilion of the Republic of Belarus. The site also hosted negotiations with Emirati trade partners on interaction in organising tourism to Belarus, the supply of dairy products to the UAE and other countries of the Middle East region, as well as joint projects in the petrochemical industry.
“I would like to note that participation in Expo 2020 contributes to the solution of a number of the most important strategic tasks,” continued Mr. Sadokho. “First of all, this is an image event aimed at positioning Belarus in the international arena as a promising and reliable partner. It is also a good opportunity to search for new sales markets and strategic partners and attract investment in high-tech and knowledge-intensive sectors of the domestic economy. Moreover, it is also a presentation of the country’s economic potential, the most significant innovative developments, technologies in various fields, their high quality, availability and environmental friendliness. This will allow demonstrating the competitiveness of Belarusian products, their compliance with the requirements of the best world standards. In addition, Expo provides an opportunity to study and use the experience of other participants for the development of new technologies in their country. Millions of visitors from different countries of the world had the opportunity to get to know the tourism potential of Belarus better, evaluate its national identity, historical and cultural heritage, sports achievements, folk art, cuisine and traditions.”

Celebration of the National Day of the Republic of Belarus at the world forum will take place on November 22nd. The Belarusian Investment Forum is expected to take place at the same time.

A CURIOUS FACT

The first World Expo was held in London in 1851, organised by Prince Albert. More than 25 countries took part in the exhibition and more than five million people came to look at the latest achievements of the 19th century. In order to showcase the exhibits, the Crystal Palace was built in London’s Hyde Park. The unique building became the prototype for exhibition pavilions for many years. At world exhibitions, inventions are presented, which subsequently imperceptibly, but firmly enter the life of every person. For example, it was at the Expo that an escalator, a computer, an incubator, an artificial Earth satellite, a diesel engine were first showcased.

By Vladislav Sychevich
Open source photos