PUTRAJAYA (Oct 4): Malaysia Pavilion at the Expo 2020 Dubai officially celebrated its grand opening on Monday by showcasing its rainforest canopy pavilion.
The 1,234.56 square metres net-zero carbon installation, themed “Energising Sustainability”, is aimed at presenting Malaysia’s sustainable vision over the 26-week expo.
Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba said Malaysia’s participation in Expo 2020 Dubai highlighted the country’s commitment to international collaboration and initiating dialogues on common challenges and opportunities on science, technology and innovation (STI).
“Expo 2020 Dubai is an opportunity on many angles including to increase Malaysia’s bilateral trade and ties with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and other participating countries,” he said in his speech in conjunction with the live stream opening ceremony of the Malaysia Pavilion.
Dr Adham’s speech was read by Malaysia’s Ambassador to the UAE Mohd Tarid Sufian.
Also present was Malaysian Green Technology and Climate Change Centre (MGTC) chief executive officer Shamsul Bahar Mohd Nor.
Malaysia’s participation at Expo 2020 Dubai is spearheaded by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI), while the MGTC is the implementing agency.
The theme of Expo 2020 Dubai is “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future” and runs from Oct 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022.
Over 25 million visitors are expected at one of the biggest in-person events since the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak.
On the aesthetic concept of the Malaysia Pavilion, Dr Adham said it symbolised the country’s commitment to sustainable development and reaffirming Malaysia’s vision of balancing socio-economic development with environmental concerns.
He also said Expo 2020 Dubai would strengthen the prospects of achieving between RM8 billion and RM10 billion in potential business leads through trade and investment opportunities.
He said about 40 memoranda of understanding (MoUs) were expected to be signed on a business-to-business (B2B), government-to-government (G2G) and government-to-business (G2B) level at the global scale expo.
According to Dr Adham, Malaysia’s representation at the expo would involve the participation of 21 federal ministries, 70 government agencies and five state governments.
About 300 Malaysian companies will participate in the weekly trade and business programmes which encompasses six thematic industry clusters.
They are science, technology, innovation and environment, trade and fourth industrial revolution, health, education, tourism and digital economy, entrepreneurship and energy, agriculture, agricommodity and water, as well as sustainability.
Source : The Edge Market