Dubai Expo 2020 and the question of ROI :: Mmegi Online

As the participation of Botswana draws to a close at the Dubai Expo 2020, questions around whether the country’s participation of the country was a) necessary and b) valuable, have occupied public debate over the past week.

These questions are justified considering the current fiscal situation of the country where budgets are tight and rationalisation of expenditure has been touted heavily in the past two years. It has been a cry by Batswana for the past few years that we need increased accountability of public funds’ expenditure. Accountability that speaks to expenditure that is motivated by clear targets and transparent reviews after we have closed projects or investments. It is with this backdrop that a debate for accounting for our participation at the Dubai Expo 2020 is relevant.

I had the pleasure of being invited to participate in activities between March 8 and 14, as a moderator in Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Outside of the Dubai Expo 2022, three conferences were held during this period: one focusing on agribusiness, one focusing on mining (both in Abu Dhabi) and the last being the Botswana Investment and Trade Conference held in Dubai on March 14 headlined by President Mokgweetsi Masisi.

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