Lazio Region’s Participation in the Italy Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai gets underway

With the official opening of the Expo, the participation of the Lazio Region, the first Italian region to have joined the Italian Pavilion in Dubai, will begin.
“Culture is Innovation, Sustainability and Wellbeing – Lazio Eternal Discovery” is the slogan of the Region’s participation.
Until March 2022, a rich calendar of events and opportunities for local businesses, designed to effectively convey Made in Lazio products on the markets, in line with national objectives on Culture, Innovation, Sustainability and Wellbeing.

On Friday 1st October the curtain will be raised on the national programme of events and initiatives of the Italy Pavilion, of which Lazio Region is a partner, at Expo Dubai, whose themes mainly concern climate, space, urban development, the promotion of intercultural dialogue, innovation and digitalisation in health, agriculture and blue economy, and the Objectives of the UN 2030 Agenda. These themes are fully consistent with the actions that the Lazio Region is pursuing through the 2021-2027 programming and find in the Emirates Exhibition a new bridge to represent the excellence of Made in Lazio on international markets, especially in the Arab world.
The theme of the Exposition is “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future“, a “connection” between peoples, countries, cultures and ideas that the pandemic has interrupted, and the reference to “creating the future” sows the seeds of hope for a new world renaissance.

“Tomorrow Expo 2020 Dubai kicks off, an event that for the next six months will be the focus of attention around the world. After long months marked by the emergency, the Expo is a very important signal of reopening and relaunching of international trade. Lazio will be there, with the strength of its territory, with its heritage of companies, culture and traditions,” commented Nicola Zingaretti, President of Lazio.

In line with the theme of Expo 2020 Dubai, the key concept expressed in the Italy Pavilion and the programme of exhibitions and events is ‘Beauty connects people‘, i.e. beauty as an element of connection between people but also as an expression of creative genius and cultural richness. In addition to the Regions, the many strategic players in the appointments of the Italian Pavilion include, among others, Leonardo, Avio, Fincantieri, Enea, CNR, CMCC – Mediterranean Centre for Climate Change, Asi, Alisei, Altagamma, Bracco, Asvis, Bulgari, Eni and the University System.

In line with the national programme, Lazio has chosen “Culture is Innovation, Sustainability and Wellbeing – Lazio Eternal Discovery” as its claim. Lazio was the first Italian region to participate in the Italy Pavilion in Dubai, and it has taken on this extraordinary opportunity for the country’s system by opening up new relations and internationalisation with Arab and Asian countries, North Africa and the entire Mediterranean basin. These are realities that look with great interest at Europe, at Italy and in particular at Lazio and its cultural and productive excellence and its skills in strategic sectors of international and global innovation such as aerospace, health, precision agriculture and food, but also at the creativity of cinema and audiovisual and fashion.

Dubai is today a crossroads between East and West and a key strategic platform for strengthening economic and trade relations with the more than 190 countries present. During the next six months, with an estimated flow of about 25 million visitors, Expo 2020 Dubai will therefore offer Lazio a unique opportunity to start collaborations, support the competitiveness of the productive fabric, attract investments, stimulate the growth of exports and strengthen its great reputation in terms of innovation and quality of university education. It is no coincidence that many local universities will be bringing their expertise and innovative training to Dubai.
The events organised by the individual regions are an integral part of the ‘Palinsesto Italia’, divided into thematic weeks: Climate & Biodiversity (3-9 October), Space (17-23 October), Urban & Rural Development (31 October-6 November), Tolerance & Inclusiveness (14-20 November), Golden Jubilee (5-11 December), Knowledge & Learning (12-18 December), Travel & Connectivity (2-8 January), Global Goals (16-22 January), Health & Wellness (30 January-5 February); Food, Agriculture & Livelihoods (20-26 February); Water (16-20 March).

As far as Lazio is concerned, numerous initiatives have been set up within the framework of its participation:

  • Lazio will participate in several important international fairs that will take place during the Expo period: Downtown Design Dubai, with a regional stand coordinated by Adi Lazio within the ICE Agency collective exhibition; Speciality Food for Agroindustry; AirShow Dubai for the Aerospace and Security sector; Arab Health for the Health and Wellness sector; Gulfood for the Agroindustry and Innovation sector;
  • Within the Expo there will also be five conventions (forums) under regional direction, in collaboration with important national players, on the Aerospace & Space Economy sectors (22 October), Promotion of Tourism & Cultural Heritage (14 January), Climate and Sustainability (16 January), Life Sciences (1 February), Agri-food and Precision Agriculture (26 February);
  • There will also be educational labs offering five Information & Training events to explore the themes of the regional S3 on Tourism, Videogames, Marketing of the Lazio University System, Startups and Fashion & Innovation;
  • As far as the promotion of the territory and its products is concerned, the Region will participate in the Italian Cuisine Week (22-28 November) and will once again propose the project “Under the Stars of Lazio” by organising three meetings with Lazio’s star chefs to showcase the excellence of the region’s cuisine; in the food sector, a series of activities are also planned in collaboration with Gambero Rosso.
  • For the Cinema Week (28 November – 4 December), then, the Ufficio Cinema della Regione Lazio, will propose the exhibition “Lazio Land of Cinema – Crafts of Italian Cinema“, the screening of Lazio Cinema International films within the format “Author’s Night” in the amphitheatre of Padiglione Italia, the Master Class Workshop on the Arts and Crafts of Cinema organised by the Centro sperimentale di Cinematografia and the Gian Maria Volonté School of Cinematographic Art, and the event dedicated to the history, peculiarities and originality of the International Rome Film Festival;
  • There will also be numerous promotional projects, co-produced with important players such as the Accademia di Santa Cecilia, the Opera Theatre of Roma, the RomaEuropa Festival and the Orchestra Popolare Italiana. In particular, the Orchestra of Santa Cecilia conducted by Antony Pappano will perform the world premiere of a piece composed exclusively for the Lazio Region by Maestro Nicola Piovani;
  • Among the promotional initiatives, it is worth mentioning the projection of a video, shot by Gabriele Salvatores, which will show some of the most iconic elements of the Lazio region (such as the Colosseum, Civita di Bagnoregio and Montecassino Abbey) throughout the Expo. Another video, projected in the “Video Wall” space along the exhibition route, will be dedicated to the new professions linked to the evolution of Technology in Lazio companies.

All events will be listed in the EVENTS CALENDAR section of this website.

“The Universal Exposition – says Quirino Briganti, Expo 2020 Dubai manager for the Lazio Region – wants to focus on a new vision of progress based on the sharing of objectives of economic, social and environmental sustainability and cooperation between peoples. These are themes present in the Lazio region that express the highest levels of innovation, competitiveness and sustainability and that will be presented within the complex Palimpsest that our Region has organised for Dubai”.
“Expo Dubai will be an important international showcase for Italy, its lifestyle, the beauty of its territories and the creativity and strong innovative drive that characterise our Country System, for which this event represents a valuable opportunity for international restart – commented the Minister for Economic Development of Lazio Region, Paolo OrneliI would like to thank the Italian Government and, in particular, the Commissioner General of Italy at Expo 2020 Dubai, Paolo Glisenti, together with his entire team for their efforts to make a high-profile participation of our country possible. Lazio is part of this challenge, we will be present, as a Region, at Expo in the Italian Pavilion and with many initiatives designed to accompany our companies and with the intention of making the strength and enormous potential of our territory known as much as possible, also in view of Rome’s candidature to host the Universal Exposition of 2030, recently announced by the Prime Minister Mario Draghi and which we will fully support“.

In order to face the challenge of the Emirates in the best possible way, in the last few months the Lazio Region has carried out a series of activities to get closer to the Expo, such as the cycle of 13 “Information & Training” appointments with the participation of about one thousand local companies. Moreover, the Lazio Region Business Hub was recently inaugurated in Dubai – hosted by the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the United Arab Emirates and designed to accompany companies on their path to internationalisation in the Gulf area – with the participation of over 50 Lazio companies that will be assisted and guided, both in Dubai and online.
A delegation from the Lazio Region, led by Quirino Briganti himself, by Marco Vincenzi, president of the Lazio Regional Council and by the president of Lazio Innova, Nicola Tasco, will be present at the inauguration of the Expo on October 1st, to officially kick off the regional activities at the Italian Pavilion.