People of all nationalities in Dubai pleased with Expo 2020 outcome

DUBAI // Emiratis and expatriates have said the celebrations over the decision for Dubai to host the World Expo in 2020 had brought the country together.

As the news sunk in, malls on Thursday were playing the national anthem on repeat and many people were dressed in UAE scarfs and flags to celebrate the country’s achievement.

“Everybody last night was happy,” said Shaker Al Haddad, 38, from Dubai, who works at Dubai Municipality.

“Everyone from children to older men, from foreigners to locals. We were all celebrating, because we are one nation.”

He added that it was not just a victory for the government but for the people, too.

“We are happy because Sheikh Mohammed and Sheikh Khalifa are happy,” he said. “When we see our leaders smiling, we are smiling also.”

One of the youngest to celebrate was two-year-old Abdullah bu Hamid, from Dubai, who was dressed in a kandura draped with the national flag.

His mother, Nada Mohammed, said: “It made me feel very proud as an Emirati – we were all very happy that we won.”

Heba Yaakoubi, 27, from Tunisia, who works in insurance, said she was proud of the UAE for its achievement.

“It’s an amazing thing,” she said. “It’s a very nice country, nice people and good security. When you come here, you feel like you’re in the safest place in the world.

“I’m happy that an Arab country takes the Expo, so thanks to God.”

Ayesha Ahmad Al Khatib, 29, from Dubai, said she was at a crossfit class when she learnt about the Expo win.

“I was actually at the gym, so I was training, but checking my phone at the same time,” she said.

“When we heard the news, we ran 1km and came back to celebrate.”

She said that there was a sense of expectation of a win in the run-up to the vote, but also a twinge of nervousness.

“We were just waiting for this day,” she said. “We had this positive feeling, like when you know you’re going to win but you never know when it comes to voting.”

Neil Roberts, 40, from the UK, travels between Dubai and London on business. He believes the UAE was the best choice to host the Expo.

“I initially thought Russia had a good chance, because it’s an equally exciting market,” he said. “But then, only Dubai could do something on this scale and make it amazing.

“Getting people to spend more time here, by creating more malls and hotels, that will make a difference to the economy.”

Abraham Mathew, 39, from India, is the owner of a business that supplies baby products to retail outlets at Dubai Mall.

He believes winning the Expo could boost the economy.

“There’s going to be a lot of changes,” he said. “A lot more people will come here, a lot of malls will open up. As a business owner, that’s good news for me.”

Arnold Ricaford, 37, from the Philippines, who works for Dubai Duty Free, said it was good news for the city.

“It shows that many nationalities are welcome to come to Dubai to go for a job,” he said. “There will be more opportunities for people in the future.”

Mohammed Ibrahim Al Dhanhani, 30, from Dubai, who is training in logistics, said the city deserved the win.

“Dubai has planned for this for two years, so we have only given the best of the best,” he said.

“Russia is a big country, so we were a little nervous. But we believe in our country and we believe in Dubai.”

Abdulla Al Marashda, 40, a Dubai-based government employee, originally from Kalba, said there was more than one reason to celebrate, with National Day fast approaching.

“It’s two parties at the same time,” he said. “Actually, yesterday was my birthday, so it’s three parties at once.”

Abby Wordley, 26, from the UK, said: “I was with my sister in the Marina ... we could hear the car horns tooting and people shouting and I think it just shows how much it means to the people of this city.”

Architect Robert Maling, 31, from the Philippines, said he would likely notice the impact in his own line of work.

“From my point of view it will be great because there will be a demand for new developments and business should pick up,” he said.

“I think a lot of big projects are going to be announced and that will show the world how confident the UAE is.”

Emirati Hamad Al Shamsi, 31, a senior accountant, said: “I was so happy when I heard the news. We were always confident that we would win but I also think this is a win for the Middle East as a whole.

“The Expo win is good for locals and expatriates and it’s something everyone can be proud of.”

Imran Malik, 39, an IT consultant from Pakistan, said he expected the talent pool to become larger in Dubai.

“These big projects always attract the best, most skilled people and that, in turn, will help Dubai even further.”

Winning the Expo is a massive achievement – but capitalising on it is a bigger challenge for the country, according to a small business owner.

Mohammed Kazim, 30, from Dubai, believes the government should encourage small to medium-sized businesses.

He is the co-founder of a start-up footwear company called Tamashee, which will open in Dubai Mall in January. The company aims to bring a modern version of traditional Emirati sandals, called tamashee, back into fashion.

Mr Kazim believes the Expo is a massive chance for the UAE.

“We can go ahead on developing real estate forever but it’s not what adds value,” he said. “It’s like developing a website and attracting traffic to the website, but you need to make sure the website converts.”

Mahmoud Al Zarooni, a student of international affairs at Zayed University and the president of its student council, said the vote had brought the whole country together.

“The whole of the UAE was supporting,” the 19-year-old said. “As a family, we were all gathered together in support of the Expo.”

He said there were moments of doubt, particularly in light of the strength of the other candidate cities.

“We were very nervous,” he said. “Russia is strong and successful, it’s a big country and it was established a long time ago.

“But it doesn’t have Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid,” he added. “We have him, so we had more faith in winning.”

mcroucher@thenational.ae

nhanif@thenational.ae