What would Ukraine gain from hosting EXPO 30?
Before starting out in the difficult and expensive competition to get Expo in Ukraine, it is worth asking: What is the point? The answer is that a country hosting a Universal Exposition benefits in several concrete ways:
- Millions of new visitors from abroad (hotels, restaurants, shops and museums are very happy).
- The creation of thousands of new jobs (during the years of preparation and during the event).
- The acceleration of infrastructure projects (airports, roads, trains, city transports).
- An Increase in GDP, foreign trade and investments (around 130 countries with a permanent pavilion during the exposition will bring their sponsors and national industry champions).
- An international showcase for the host country, in the media spotlights for 6 months.
Let’s start with the last one. The international visibility brought by Expo would be a unique opportunity to redefine the image of Ukraine abroad. As things stand, the worldwide image of Ukraine is, unfortunately, linked to the war in Donbas. The main purpose of visits abroad by the Ukrainian president and ministers is to gain support for the country’s territorial integrity and military aid, and to safeguard energy rights on Russian gas. This is perfectly understandable, but that image of the country does not help to increase foreign investments, tourism and long-term international projects. Of course, there are many positive things to say about Ukraine, but negative news always prevails and has the greatest impact on public opinion.
EXPO is the opportunity to offer a new image of Ukraine linked to a big project and to have the international press focus on that for some years. Ukraine would have the chance to show off interesting plans for the future and to demonstrate the role it wants to play on the world stage.
In other words, the competition for Expo 2030 is, at the same time, a stress test – a chance to prove Ukraine’s ability to organise a big event, and an exercise in national marketing with a view to changing the international perception of the country.
For example, the success of Milan Expo 2015 changed the perception of Italy. considered until that year Italy was considered a less reliable country than Spain, which had improved its international standing precisely because of Expo 1992 in Seville and the Olympic Games in Barcelona, in the same year.
This exercise in redefining Ukraine’s international image starts with the preparation of the Candidature Dossier for EXPO 2030 ODESA, which will be officially presented in June 2022. Ukraine has 5 months to prepare a sound project so as to pass the selection. Some of the candidate countries will not pass selection and be thrown out of the game, reducing the number of players. The Dossier is composed of the following parts:
- Title – The title shows the main topics of the expo, which are also an indication -not a very binding one – what all participant countries should focus on in their national projects.
- Timetable – The event has a fixed duration of 6 months. The country decides which period. For the present Expo in Dubai they chose winter. Odessa will likely develop the event from the beginning of April to the end of September, taking advantage of the summer.
- Area of Expo – The city hosting the exposition must provide an area exclusively dedicated to the expo, with logistic connections and services for millions of visitors. This venue, is traditionally a green or abandoned area, which will be completely cleared of the pavilions after the event,leaving a legacy to the city for residential, commercial or scientific use.
- City Infrastructure – All cities hosting an Expo must review their transport system and prepare hospitality (the number of hotel beds available) for a flow of millions of visitors. Moreover, critical city services like local police, have to be trained to assist foreigners.
- Financial plan – The Government has to guarantee the investments needed to support the infrastructure plan (roughly $2.5 billion). Of course, a significant contribution to the budget will come from local and international sponsors.
Let’s brainstorm a bit to come up with title of the Expo. According to the official website of EXPO 2030 ODESA (https://expo2030odesa.com/en/) the title is: “Renaissance. Technologies. Future”. Very nice words, but what do they mean? The Candidature Dossier has to be developed so that it gives concrete meaning to the title and so that it immediately defines partnerships and sectors of activity.
- Renaissance – It sounds very vague (As an Italian, I am not against it. I cannot but love the word Rinascimento). Is it about art and culture? Or is it related more to architecture and design? Will the event involve contemporary artists or designers of Ukraine? It is important to understand which Ukrainian names are going to be partners for this chapter.
- Technologies – Which ones? Smartphone technology? In this field, Ukraine has strong industrial advantages in terms of products development and consumption. Or medical technologies, post-Covid, like telemedicine? (By the way, this a strategic subject for African and Asian countries). The technological sector behind the title will define the potential sponsors of the event.
- Future – Beautiful but ordinary. Unless it shows a vision of Ukraine’s importance in the world with a plan of autonomous development, based on its own resources.
As far as the location for Expo is concerned, it is worth remembering Odessa’s strategic sectors – ports and logistics. They represent the maritime excellence of Ukraine. Are they part of the EXPO 2030 ODESA project? They are the economic pillars of the city and a strategic asset for the Ukrainian economy. Moreover, shipping and port services are the local sectors with the highest international exposure. It would be a mistake to exclude them from the plan. For example, Milan Expo 2015 activated Italian companies in the energy sector and food industry.
Now, let’s assume that the Ukrainian Candidature Dossier will be impressive enough to pass selection by the Bureau of Expositions (BIE) in Paris. After that, a one-year marketing campaign will start.
The campaign will be a hunt for votes, carried out mostly by the diplomatic personnel of Ukraine. We can expect a war room in the Ministry of Foreign affairs of Ukraine with a giant map of the world on which the 170 BIE member countries are marked with flags of the candidates (Italy, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Ukraine), according to the voting preference of each country.
It will be a tough game for Ukraine’s ambassadors, who will have to race around to obtain votes for Odessa or prepare the ground for delegations of Ukrainian ministers, business associations and representatives of Odessa city and its region.
Of course, governments do not give their votes for free. If they are not obliged to vote in a certain way by existing alliances or commercial partnerships, they will ask for either economic advantages (e.g. trade deals, industrial agreements), or diplomatic support in international decisions, or cultural exchanges (music, museums, universities). To win at this game you need to prepare offers and look for votes everywhere. For instance, Italy obtained decisive votes from countries in Africa, South America and the Pacific Ocean, which Turkish diplomacy did not consider.
There are some smart tricks which are usually assumed to reinforce a marketing campaign:
- Appoint a very prestigious personality in the diplomatic staff as head of the marketing campaign for EXPO 2030 ODESA. For example, the current ambassador of Ukraine to Washington, Oksana Markova, is an ideal choice. She is respected by diplomats, government officials and her relations established in the USA would attract many votes from other countries.
- Create a reward system for ambassadors, who successfully assure votes for Odessa.
- Involve all foreign diplomatic bodies in Kyiv (embassies, chambers of commerce) and the Diplomatic Club of Odessa (consulates and cultural foundations) in the marketing activity. These foreign representatives will be keen to play a professional role in the game.
In conclusion, creating a successful marketing campaign for EXPO 2030 ODESA is possible, provided that the strong Ukrainian national pride is used to fuel cooperation – making institutions work together and harmonizing the most positive energies in the Country.
