Abu Dhabi: The Afghanistan pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai remained closed to visitors, after the opening of the world expo in Dubai on October 1, 2021.
The Afghanistan Pavilion image which circulated on social media, shows that the pavilion is empty – except for a few trees and plants. Some parts of the building looked unfinished and there were no officials.
A security guard at the building where the pavilion is located told Khaleej Times, they had not seen anyone working there in weeks. Afghanistan is one of about 200 countries participating in the six-month fair. It was not immediately clear whether the pavilion, would open later during the expo fair.
The flag of the republic of Afghanistan was raised among the flags of the participating countries during the opening ceremony on September 30, 2021.
The Afghanistan pavilion was organized by the previous Afghan government before the Taliban captured the country on August 12.
Afghanistan Pavilion upon opening
The pavilion is a three-storey building, and there were plans to showcase the country’s cultural and heritage. With a strong focus on market building, the pavilion was supposed to have countless companies from various Afghan industries to showcase local assets.
Afghanistan’s agricultural sector includes saffron, dried fruit such as pine nuts, almonds and pistachios. The plan at the Expo 2020 in Dubai had also included introducing the world to the girls’ robotics team of Afghanistan, the country’s national orchestra and also its cricket team.
However, the war-torn country witnessed the Taliban taking over the nation recently, after which there have been a wave of changes, especially with regard to the general functioning of women in society.