May 2000 - Nr. 5
Developing Countries in the Spotlight at Expo 2000
TWIG - As Hannover gears up for the opening of Expo 2000 this June, organizers say visitors can anticipate much more than a high-tech showcase for the industrial world. Developing countries make up more than half of the 180 nations taking part in the international exposition, and they are expected to make a strong claim on visitors’ attention, not least with their national pavilions. "The smaller the nation, the more creative the pavilion," remarks one inside observer.
While the United States is planning to exhibit in a rented hall, smaller countries like Nepal, Bhutan and Ethiopia are building their own extravagant pavilions. Hundreds of craftspeople have been labouring for years on the intricately carved columns of Nepal’s double temple, an exhibition space combining Buddhist and Hindu architectural styles. "We want to show who we are and what we can do," says Amrit Sakyja, Expo general secretary of Nepal. Many countries from the developing world have joined forces with neighbours to present regional exhibits. As many as forty nations, for example, are contributing to the vast exhibit inside Expo’s Africa Hall.
Many exhibitors have benefited from a DM 100 million (U.S.$50 million) fund set aside by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development to help smaller countries take part in the fair. Through an assistance program managed by the German Association for Technical Cooperation (GTZ: Gesellschaft für technische Zusammenarbeit), participants have received organizational advice in addition to financial aid. "We haven’t influenced the content," notes Peter Conze of the GTZ Expo Office. "And we haven’t fully financed any country." Every participating nation has to bear about a third of its costs, which average DM .5 million.
Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul sees the diversity as appropriate for a fair addressing the challenges of the 21st century. "Our topic is the world’s global issues," says Wieczorek-Zeul. "You can’t discuss that with just the rich nations."
