A majority of two-thirds of the members of the International Exhibitions Bureau voted to postpone the Expo 2020 in Dubai for a year, due to the spread of the Corona virus (Covid-19), according to organizers announced on Monday.
"The International Bureau of Exhibitions formally agrees to delay Expo 2020 in Dubai until October 1, 2021 (and continues until) March 31, 2022, after the decision has obtained more than the required two-thirds majority," the organizers said in a statement.
The Executive Committee of the International Bureau of Exhibitions recommended last April to support the request of the UAE government to postpone the Expo 2020 for a full year, against the backdrop of the outbreak of the new Corona virus.
Dubai had hoped to attract around 25 million visitors to the six-month, multi-billion-dollar event, which was scheduled to kick off on October 20 this year.
Dubai is heavily dependent on tourism, and in 2019 it welcomed more than 16 million foreign visitors.
To date, the UAE has recorded more than 14,000 new infections, and 126 deaths.