Thai PM backs world expo bid
September 3, 2010 by TTRweekly Staff
Filed under News
BANGKOK, Thailand’s, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva will officially announce Thailand’s intention to bid for World Expo 2020 during his tour of World Expo 2010 in Shanghai, China, 5 September.
The Cabinet approved the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau’s proposal to host World Expo 2020, at its weekly meeting last Tuesday.
It assigned deputy prime minister, Sanan Kachornprasart, to coordinate with TCEB to select a host city which will involve a detailed feasibility study of the three short-listed provinces; Ayutthaya, Chon Buri and Chiang Mai to be submitted within120 days. The study will be paid for out of TCEB’s annual budget and identify a single candidate city.
TCEB president Akapol Sorasuchart estimated Thailand would need around Bt20 billion to improve infrastructure such as water and electricity supplies and public transport in the city finally designated.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva
The outcome is far from certain as Thailand will need to compete with nine other countries and an array of 15 cities that have declared similar intentions to the world expo organisers.
They are: Philippines-Manila; Australia-Brisbane; Denmark-Copenhagen; the UAE-Dubai; Brazil-Rio De Janeiro and Sao Paolo; Canada-Montreal; the United States-San Francisco, New York, Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis and Atlanta; China-Guangzhou; and South Africa.
Once a country has lodged its official bid with the Bureau of International Expositions, other cities have six months to respond. It is understood that some competiting countries could present bids by late 2011, which would give other competitors just six months to counter with their own comprehensive bids sometime in 2012 at the latest.
BIE will announce which city won the bid for 2020 expo no later than 2014.
That China reportedly spent upwards of US$58bn (that’s about 1.75 trillion baht) on infrastructure should not phase the current PM, as he will be political toast long before the bid fails and the judging panel members have died laughing. This is a political stunt, designed to show how engaged the Democrats are with the people who don’t vote for them in Ayutthaya, Chon Buri and Chiang Mai. Not one of the named provinces is suitable but that won’t stop junkets, brown envelopes and lunchbox justice in the selection process.