The World Expo 2020 was postponed by a year due to the coronavirus

Dubai - The International Expo 2020, which was set to begin in October in Dubai, has been postponed for a year due to the coronavirus. During a vote among the members of the International Exhibitions Bureau (BIE), the required two-thirds of countries voted in favor of this decision, according to the AP agency. According to AP, the Expo will take place from October 1, 2021.

According to the original plan, the event was supposed to start on October 20 this year and last until April 10 next year. The resolution for the postponement considers a new date from October 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022.

The BIE announced today that more than two-thirds of countries have already voted in favor of this resolution, which is the minimum needed to approve the postponement. The voting is ongoing and has not yet concluded; its final result will be known by the end of the month. However, the bureau announced today that the postponement is secured, as two-thirds of countries have supported it thus far.

The BIE Executive Committee unanimously supported the postponement in April. The proposal for the postponement was also supported by the Czech Republic, as indicated by a website dedicated to the Czech exposition. Its central theme will be technology for extracting water from atmospheric humidity using solar energy. The Czech pavilion was also to include a restaurant and present, for example, Czech glass or spa treatment.

It was decided in 2014 that Dubai would be the host of this Expo. This revitalized the local real estate market, and Dubai, one of the emirates of the United Arab Emirates, invested billions of dollars in preparations, according to AP. It anticipated up to 25 million tourists.

Dubai's airport is among the busiest in the world, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced Emirates airline to halt flights. The influx of tourists was interrupted, leading to unrest in the real estate market.

Dubai's economy relies on trade and tourism. All of these sectors have been severely impacted by the coronavirus. In the UAE, the infection has been confirmed in 14,000 people, and 126 patients have died there. Several million foreigners are employed in Dubai, some of whom lost their jobs due to the pandemic and found themselves in economic difficulties.