Riyadh city, Saudi Arabia. Image © artisticArtbycreative, via Shutterstock
The Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) announced yesterday, on Tuesday, November 28, that Riyadh, the capital city of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been selected to host the 2030 World Expo, by securing the necessary two-thirds majority of votes in the first round. Marking another milestone for the Gulf, following Dubai’s Expo 2020 and Qatar’s hosting the FIFA World Cup in 2022, this five-yearly event draws millions of visitors and investments. Under the theme, “The Era of Change: Together for a Foresighted Tomorrow”, Expo 2030 Riyadh will run between 1 October 2030 and 31 March 2031.
Competing against South Korea’s port city of Busan and Rome in Italy, Riyadh won the bid with 119 votes, while Busan received 29 votes, and Rome got 17 votes out of the 182 members of the Paris-based Bureau International des Expositions (BIE). Other explored subjects were the themes of “Transforming Our World, Navigating Toward a Better Future” by Busan and “People and Territories: Regeneration, Inclusion and Innovation”, for Rome.