Saudi Arabia’s EXPO 2030 win to speed up mega tourism projects: SICO

Riyadh city

SICO Bank said Saudi Arabia’s winning the rights to host EXPO 2030 in Riyadh will likely accelerate mega tourism projects and drive a leap in construction over the coming years.

EXPO 2030 will stimulate construction activity in the Central and Western regions, SICO said in a recent report, expecting the benefit from new buildings in the hospitality sector to remain after the event end.

EXPO 2030 and other global events, especially sports events, will help the Kingdom develop a sustainable annual turnout of tourists after Hajj and Umrah.

On the other hand, SICO added that the hospitality sector in Riyadh seems underserved to meet the expected tourist arrivals. The expected number of visitors at EXPO 2030 may surpass 22 million in EXPO 2015 Milan and 24 million in EXPO 2020 Dubai.

Moreover, a decline in the number of bidders made it more likely for Saudi Arabia to become the host. Saudi Arabia had over 50% win rate after 84 out of 169 countries announced their support for the Kingdom’s bid to host EXPO 2030.