Saudi Arabia on Friday submitted its bid to host Expo 2030, reported UAE-based publication Khaleej Times.
The bid, which has been moved by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, under the theme “The era of change: Leading the planet to a foresighted tomorrow”.
“The letter, from Crown Prince HRH Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, was handed to the Secretary General of the BIE, Dimitri S Kerkentzes, by the CEO of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City (RCRC), Fahd Al Rasheed, and the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to France, Fahad Al Ruwaily,” said a statement from expo organising body the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE).
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia submitted to the BIE today a letter of candidature to organise World #Expo2030 in Riyadh
— BIE (@bieparis) October 29, 2021
The candidature phase for Expo 2030 kicked off in April this year when Russia notified the BIE of its candidature for Moscow.
“This was followed by the Republic of Korea’s candidature for Busan on 23 June 2021, Italy’s candidature for Rome on 7 October 2021, and Ukraine’s candidature for Odesa on 15 October 2021,” read the statement.
The time for the submission of the candidature will end on October 29 (today).
“Once the list is closed, the project examination phase of the candidature process will be launched, during which each candidate will submit a detailed candidature dossier,” said the BIE.
Saudi Arabia’s first World Expo participation was at Expo 1958 in Brussels and it has actively participated in such expos ever since.
According to Khaleej Times, Prince Mohammed informed the governing body that Riyadh intends to host the Expo in 2030 as it would coincide with the culmination of the kingdom’s economic reform programme known as Vision 2030.
“We live in an era of change, and we face an unprecedented need for humanity’s collective action,” said the crown prince in the statement.
“It is clear that the whole world, as a collective, needs to work together to foresee the future and address, with its brightest minds, the challenges and opportunities that emanate from this change.”
Saudi Arabia’s Gulf neighbour, the United Arab Emirates is currently hosting the Expo 2020 world fair in Dubai.