SCO pavilion at Beijing Expo 2019 to reflect “Shanghai spirit”

On 9 May 2018, a conference dedicated to the organisation of Beijing Expo 2019, attended by SCO Secretary-General Rashid Alimov, took place in Shenzhen, China.

Heads of Chinese city and provincial administrations and large companies as well as representatives of business, social, cultural and art communities and leading media organisations met in the "evergreen city" to discuss approaches to joint work on preparing the large-scale exhibition, which will open in April 2019. The official launch of Beijing Expo 2019 took place at the conference.

The SCO will have a separate 2,500-square-metre pavilion at the upcoming Expo.

"The SCO pavilion will become an integral part of the flourishing town, which will bloom in northern Beijing like a spring rainbow and welcome millions of guests from all around the world on 29 April 2019. There is no doubt that this will be an event of international importance," the SCO Secretary-General said.

"The SCO Garden, as we called our pavilion, is expected to be a highlight of the Expo and of the picturesque district of Yanqing," Rashid Alimov noted. He added: "The three most important elements for life — Earth, Air and Water — form the basis of the concept behind our pavilion. They are similar to the three main goals of the organisation: joint cooperation, joint development and joint prosperity. The SCO Garden will show our collaborative response to today's challenges and threats as well as our joint efforts on the way to shared prosperity. Our garden has eight "gardeners," and each one contributes to the atmosphere of harmony, welfare, creation and prosperity."

The Secretary-General also told the participants about the upcoming SCO summit that will be held in the "Eurasian G8" format for the first time. "Within a month, on 9-10 June, the new development trajectory of the world's largest trans-regional organisation will be determined in Qingdao, under China's chairmanship. The energy of the "Shanghai spirit" will give new impetus to the process of discovering the organisation's enormous potential and also strengthen the friendship and cooperation between the countries and peoples in the SCO family," Mr Alimov commented.
More than 120 countries and international organisations as well as over 100 unofficial participants (provinces, regions, cities and international companies) are expected at Beijing Expo 2019. According to preliminary estimates, 16 million people from all over the world will visit the exhibition, which is to be held in Yanqing District, Beijing, between April and October 2019.