One of the important means to flourish the economy with a forward-looking approach and in a durable way, to do effective activities to create jobs, expand international relations and cultural exchanges with other nations, and attract tourists is holding a global exhibition called Expo. These global exhibitions are different from trade exhibitions that are held at national and international levels. Many observers who are experts on running exhibitions argue that Expo is the most advanced and broadest event, which I would like to call the Olympics of exhibitions that will benefit trade in the long run.
Global exhibitions or Expos cover global topics that reflect the diverse experiences of different people. The role that the Expo plays is much greater than showcasing new technologies. It is focused on predicting the common challenges facing the man. Expo is a very important event on the world stage, and due to its long duration of about six months, many consider it to be more important than the Olympics and world sports competitions, which last shorter and are focused only on sports.
Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) which is based in Paris organizes Expos. The Expo is not only to yield a profit, but it is a global stage for displaying the latest cultural, social, scientific and economic achievements made by the countries within the framework of the theme of the exhibition and their development prospects. Each expo is held revolving around a global issue (or challenge) and in a location that is specially built for it. It is considered a place for face-to-face interaction and communication between the nations’ thinking and achievements as well as visitors. One of the biggest features of Expo is to create a peaceful environment away from any political matters, where participants from all over the world and visitors can interact with culture, history, civilization and economic issues. During the Expo, they (exhibitors and visitors) build small borderless countries next to each other and they hold meetings and talks within the framework of economic, social, cultural and scientific issues with no any specific political ceremonies involved. Furthermore, the following items can also be considered among the goals of Expos:
Strengthening international relations on a common issue;
Sharing educational and cultural experiences on a common global issue;
Showing the capabilities, history, civilization, customs of a country relating to a specific issue;
Strengthening and supporting Expos as laboratories for future experiences;
Increasing and enhancing the growth of economic and international exchanges;
Creating economic prosperity in the host country;
Generating revenues and wealth for participating countries through establishing new trade relationships; and
Marketing for goods with comparative advantage.
The theme of the Expos is defined by the host country after gaining of the approval of BIE. The organizer aims to achieve scientific and practical solutions obtained by the participants to solve a global problem during the Expo period.
The first World Expo was held in London in 1851, in which Iran had active participation. This makes Iran shoulder more responsibility for participating in Expos. Needless to say, more than 63 Expos have been held across the world so far and Iran, apart from the 1851 Expo, has taken part in different Expos before and seven others after the Islamic Revolution in South Korea, Portugal, Germany, Japan, China, Italy, Kazakhstan and the United Arab Emirates.
Seyed Hossein Mirzafarjouyan is a University lecturer and exhibition industry expert and an advisor to the CEO of the Islamic Republic of Iran International Exhibition Co