Finnish Minister of Economic Affairs, Mika Lintilä, will visit Dubai on 10–12 February. The visit seeks to boost the economic relations between Finland and United Arab Emirates, promote the exports by Finnish businesses and to prepare for Finland’s participation at the Expo 2020 Dubai later this year.
Minister Lintilä will meet Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansoori, Minister of the Economy and Reem Al Hashim, Minister of State. He will also participate in the topping-out ceremony of the Finnish pavilion at the Expo 2020 Dubai and inaugurate the joint space of Business Finland and Finnish Business Council called Finnspace.
Ministers to discuss cooperation
In the meeting with Al Mansoori, Minister of the Economy, the topics will include relations between the countries, business opportunities of Finnish companies, the Expo 2020 Dubai and innovation cooperation, such as cleantech and circular economy. With Al Hashim, Minister of State, Minister Lintilä will address the topics of the Expo 2020 Dubai, Finnish education and health technology.
“The relations between our countries have become closer in recent years. The UAE offers Finnish companies business opportunities in areas such as digitalisation of the various sectors, bio and circular economy, health and wellbeing services, education and tourism”, Minister Lintilä comments.
Expo 2020 Dubai
The Expo 2020 Dubai will take place from 20 October 2020 to 10 April 2021. Over one hundred Finnish companies and organisations have registered to participate in the World Expo. More than 25 million visits are expected during the six months of the expo.
The Finnish pavilion at the World Expo will be called LUMI (snow, in Finnish) and it brings together a winter landscape and an Arab tent. The pavilion has reached its rooftop height, and Minister Lintilä will make an appearance at the topping-out ceremony.
The theme of the pavilion is 'Sharing future happiness', and it will showcase circular economy, sustainable development and innovation. The pavilion was designed by JKMM Architects (Finland) and constructed by Expomobilia (Switzerland).
Largest Middle East market for exports
“This year will be extraordinary for Finnish business activities in the UAE, and the country is one of the most important countries importing Finnish products in the region. The World Expo will offer an exceptional opportunity to showcase the expertise of Finnish businesses for six months and promote the internationalisation and export activities of the companies,” Minister Lintilä states.
Company visits are also on the minister’s agenda. The companies are KONE, Konecranes, Outotec, Nokia, Wärtsilä, Metso, FinNuclear and Education Finland.
In 2018, the United Arab Emirates was the largest of the countries importing Finnish goods in the Middle East. The most important export products from Finland to the UAE were machinery, equipment, pulp, paper and board and products processed from them.
