Introduction
Every five years, one of the member states of the Bureau International des Expositions is usually voted to host the World Expo. The World Expo is an event that attract millions of people across the globe who come together to share ideas on various issues ranging from innovations, sustainable development, how to improve quality of life for populations around the world, and any issue of international concern. An opportunity to host such big events like the World Expo often presents a number of benefits and costs to the host country. This paper presents some of the pros and cons that Dubai is likely to experience by hosting the World Expo 2020.
Pros of the Expo 2020
Dubai’s win of the bid to host the Expo 2020 was marked by fireworks from Burj Khalifa towers as an indication of their celebration for the victory. Dubai’s win of the Expo 2020 bid is likely to translate to a number of benefits to the country’s economy. First, hosting the Expo will boost the country’s tourism industry because of the millions of visitors who will attend the event. Various businesses under the tourism industry such as resorts, hotels, and tour firms are likely to experience high demand for their services such as accommodation facilities from the visitors. Consequently, these benefits will trickle down to other sectors of the economy such as industries. Second, the Expo 2020 will create hundreds of jobs to Dubai citizens because new businesses are likely to be set up and the existing ones expanded in order to meet the increased demand for goods and services because of the Expo. Third, the opportunity to host the Expo will also open up Dubai’s economy to investors from different parts of the world.
Cons of Expo 2020
Despite the several benefits that will accrue to the Dubai’s economy because of hosting the Expo 2020, the country might also face a number of challenges. For instance, some of the sectors such as tourism and real estate may experience an oversupply of services such as accommodation facilities after the Expo. Second, the government will incur many costs in setting up necessary infrastructure, as well as, beefing up security across the country. Additionally, prices of goods and services might also increase during the Expo period due to increase in demand.
However, the government can avert such challenges that are likely to be experienced for hosting the Expo 2020 by formulating suitable policies. For instance, market regulation by the government may help to prevent exploitation of citizens and visitors through exorbitant prices of goods and services. The government can also pursue the policy of controlled development to ensure less harm to the environment because a number of constructions such as buildings are likely to be set up in preparation for the Expo. Therefore, the government should ensure that all construction activities are sustainable.
Conclusion
Hosting a major event like the World Expo is a great opportunity to the host country as discussed above. However, such an opportunity also presents significant challenges. Dubai’s economy will reap a great deal from the Expo 2020, but the government will also incur much cost in preparation for the Expo. The government can overcome some of these challenges by formulating suitable policies such as controlled development to ensure sustainability.