Doha, Qatar: The International Horticultural Expo 2023 Doha, which has reached midway, recorded over 2.5 million visitors, said a top official.
“We reached the peak in terms of attracting a huge number of visitors due to pleasant weather,” said Secretary General of Expo 2023 Doha Mohammed Al Khouri.
Speaking to Qatar Radio recently, he said that the six-month-long event which targeted to receive 3 million visitors, so far saw 2.5 million people.
“We are expecting, in the second half, growing number of visitors during the last three months due to pleasant weather and winter vacations,” said Al Khouri.
He said that Expo 2023 Doha provides opportunities for visitors to explore the different cultures and experiences showcased by the pavilions of the participating countries in agriculture and environment sectors.
“Plants from different climates and eco-system which were brought from all over the world for the Expo 2023 will be shifted to greenhouses to ensure their sustainability as a legacy of the event,” said Al Khouri.
Speaking about the Expo House, he said that the main building of the Expo 2023 Doha with plants on the rooftop is an inspiration for kitchen garden and backyard landscaping.
The main building set the Guinness World Record for being “The Largest Green Roof” in the world built on an area of 4,031sqm.
“We are running a campaign to encourage households to adopt the idea. A group of households made landscape on their rooftop,” said Al Khouri.
“Plans are afoot to issue a guideline for making rooftop gardens in coordination with authorities concerned,” said Al Khouri advising the developers to design the project keeping in mind the rooftop garden.
Speaking about the major forthcoming events at Expo 2023, he said the International Agricultural Exhibition, AgriteQ 2024, will be held in February.
“It is an international annual exhibition which will showcase latest technologies in agriculture and environment sectors. We will also provide salutations for desertification. This year the participating countries will benefit the exhibition in a big way,” said Al Khouri.
He said that the organizing committee of Expo 2023 Doha is running an intensified campaign to educate community members about the importance of plantation and greenery to prevent the environment for addressing climate change.
“We in coordination with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education are running the green campaign targeting all schools operating in Qatar,” said Al Khouri.
He said that a team from Expo 2023 Doha visits schools and host the students at the Expo venue to instil the importance of protecting the environment. Moreover, he said a student can determine to plant at least a tree and care for it. which will make a great difference.
To a question about the initiative of ‘10 Million Trees’, Al Khouri who is also Director of the Public Parks Department at the Ministry of Municipality said that the work is in full swing to plant trees in coordination with partners from government and private sector. “We are expected to meet the target of plating 10 million trees by 2030,” said Al Khouri.
