Expo 2020 will be a win-win game for both Dubai and Lyon: Official

It’s a win-win game for the City of Lyon and Dubai both if emirate wins Expo 2020 bid on Wednesday, November 27th, said a senior official.

Speaking to Emirates 24l7, Philippe Grillot, President of Chamber of Commerce and Industries of Lyon, said: “Lyon is a big supporter of Dubai’s Expo 2020 bid. We hope that Dubai will win bid and it’ll benefit both Lyon companies in Dubai and back there in France, offering more opportunities to do business.”

City of Lyon has already officially thrown its weight behind Dubai’s bid to host Expo 2020.

Philippe Grillot is currently visiting Dubai along with a delegation from Lyon to promote business ties and also participate in the Big 5 exhibition currently taking place in Dubai.

Philippe Grillot said one part of the mutual relationship is that a lot of investments are going from UAE to Lyon and vice versa.

“If Dubai wins Expo 2020, business will come in both the cities and both will benefit, thanks to our historic relations,” he said, adding that Lyon has hosted a number of big expos in the 20th century.

Gérard Collomb, Senator-Mayor of Lyon and President of Greater Lyon, earlier said: “Dubai’s bid for the Expo 2020 demonstrates how large cities can rise to the challenges of the future, which is relevant to Lyon’s own international development plan."

Lyon, France’s second largest city with a key strategic position in the heart of Europe, has strengthened its international profile over the last few years and particularly its historical links with Asia.

Philippe Grillot said: “The nature of the relationship between Lyon and Dubai goes back long time. There are many companies in Lyon that have offices in Dubai. In order to strengthen financial, political and cultural links with Dubai, this delegation from Lyon has representatives from each of the sectors.

A delegation had visited Dubai in March 2013 and 25 companies from were part of the delegation at that time. This time the visit comes along with Big 5 exhibition and the number of firms have increased. This time 40 companies are taking part in Big 5 and 20 are from Lyon alone.”

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