A satisfactory review

The Shanghai World Expo 2010 drew to a close on the 31st of October with an event on the Huangpu river attended by the Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. 73 million people, the vast majority of whom were Chinese, visited Shanghai 2010 - making it the biggest World Expo in history. Belgium can look back on the event with satisfaction.

Telling figures

It was not until July 2009 that the Joint Venture Shanghai 2010 started to construct the pavilion that went on to be raised in a record-breaking 9 months. The excellent collaboration between the federal government, the three regional authorities, sponsors and partners meant that what was considered impossible at the start of 2009 became a reality: Belgium became one of the most popular pavilions at the Expo 2010.
A total of more than six million visitors visited us, or around one out of twelve Expo visitors.

Here are a few figures to illustrate the success of the Belgian-EU pavilion:
• 6 million visitors
• 75 tonnes of French fries
• 8.5 tonnes of waffles
• 3 million free chocolates
• 12,800 litres of Belgian ice cream
• 850 loose diamonds sold
• 160 seminars organised
• 105,000 visitors to the Belgian Beer Café and Belgian Essence Restaurant

Sales and profit figures:
• Total sales of +/- 20 million EUR
• Belgian Beer Café and Belgian Essence Restaurant: sales totalling 2.8 million EUR
• Diamond corner: sales totalling 5.1 million EUR
• Chocolate corner: sales totalling 3.6 million EUR
• Operating profit of +/- 3 million EUR

Awards

Following the close of the Expo, the Expo Bureau granted the pavilion a number of awards in recognition of its organisation. The Belgian-EU pavilion received 3 awards that testify to the excellent quality and dedication of its staff.
"Best service team of the expo" was a reward for the team of 300 primarily Chinese hosts and hostesses who came from the various universities in Shanghai and its surrounding areas.
"Best tax payer of the Expo", a result directly linked to the high sales and profit generated by all pavilions.
"Best performer in accreditations administration", a distinction for the team that dealt with the provision and organisation of special access for the press and VIPs.