Written by: Zhang Ruyun Photographed by: Xu Jiechen

Vicente Loscertales, the secretary general of the Paris-based Bureau of International Expositions (BIE) visited Shanghai on February 13-15 in an effort to further propel the preparation for the Expo Shanghai. He held a press conference, which was presided over by Mr. Zhou Hanmin, Deputy Director of the Bureau of Expo Shanghai Coordination, in the afternoon of February 15 to brief the media upon his Shanghai tour. The secretary general and Mr. Zhou took questions concerning the preparatory work of the Expo Shanghai from the media

How significant is the adoption of the“Application for Registration of Expo 2010 Shanghai China”, and how will it guide the upcoming phases of Expo preparation?

At the conference, Loscertales said that the approval of the“Application for Registration of Expo 2010 Shanghai China”(“Application”) by the 138th general assembly of the BIE signified that the preparatory work for the Expo Shanghai has entered a substantive stage. He believed that various forces in China will join hands together for the smooth and timely preparation of the Expo Shanghai.

The secretary general added that the Application has put forward a plan and a vision for the preparations in the coming few years, formulating clearly the overall plan and key principals for the future preparations. The member countries of the BIE have gained better understanding of China’s commitment, planning and visions for the Expo Shanghai via the Application. Now, the key elements and necessary factors for the full-scale preparation of the Expo Shanghai are all in place.

How will the Expo Shanghai be financed, and how is the market development progressing now?

Mr. Zhou Hanmin answered some questions posed by reporters regarding the financing of the Expo construction. He said that the funds for construction are very important and the Application also made clear the triple financing plan. In the actual implementation of the financing plan, about 40% of the funds will come from guarantees and investments from the central and local governments, with another 40% to be financed via the issuance of corporate bonds and the remaining 20% to be financed from multiple sources, taking everything into consideration. The first batch of the World Expo bonds was already issued last year, and other batches of Expo bonds will be issued this year and in the coming years in accordance with the schedule.

As for the market development, Zhou added that the organizers of the Expo Shanghai are now in the process of selecting partners and top sponsors, and the bilateral negotiations are still ongoing.

When asked about whether there is contradiction between the BIE’s objection to excess commercial operation of the World Expo and the issuance of Expo bonds, which is clearly a commercial move, Loscertales said:“there is nothing contradictory between these two things. As in my eyes, the issuance of Expo bonds is actually a financing means, instead of a commercial one.”

How will the Expo Shanghai develop and deepen the theme in a bid to promote the invitation work for the World Expo?

It is learned that the organizer of the Expo Shanghai is now working on a set of participating guidelines, which are a series of official documents fleshing out the contents stipulated in the Application with regard to the exhibition events and activities. The guidelines are to provide specific guidance and service information for participants to the Expo Shanghai, and they do not need the approval of the general assembly of the BIE.

Mr. Loscertales said that countries having received the invitations will respond immediately after the issuance of invitations by the central government of China, and the BIE will assist the organizer of the Expo Shanghai in coping with these issues, in particular the drafting of the participating guidelines for participating countries, international organizations and enterprises.

He added that the core of the World Expo is the development of the theme, which to some extent determines what the participating countries will exhibit. The development of the theme should be future-oriented and practical, not only enabling the participating countries to fully understand the meaning of the theme so that they could develop it in line with the characteristics of the own countries, but also allowing the visitors to directly feel the sense of the Expo as their participation is also an important way to experience the theme.

How will the China Pavilion at the Expo Shanghai display the essences of the traditional culture?

With respect to the exhibits of the China Pavilion at the Expo Shanghai, Mr. Loscertales said that the World Expo should not only be future-oriented but it also be rooted in the traditional culture. To visitors, Expo is but an exhibition of the achievements from the past to the future. When visiting the China Pavilion at the Expo Shanghai, the visitors would like to see the essences of the traditional Chinese culture. Therefore, the exhibits at the China Pavilion should not only be future-oriented, but also reflect the traditional culture.

How will the Expo Shanghai make efforts to enable developing countries to participate in the World Expo in line with their own wishes?

Mr. Loscertales said:“it is a key issue and task for developing countries participating in the Expo Shanghai to successfully display their exhibits. The success of this depends upon whether the organizers could make effective and smart use of the financial aids of 100 million US dollars. My suggestion is that these financial aids should be used to help developing countries prepare their exhibits and work out a more perfect participating plan.”

The BIE secretary general also related a story for the reporters on this issue. In 1967, the then president of Senegal said during his visit to the World Expo Montreal that“We are today to participate in the Expo, but I am not sure when could we participate in line with our own wishes?”

“I hope his wish will come true in Shanghai forty-three years after the speech he made in 1967,”added Loscertales in a passionate tone.