Expo 2023 was the name given to an upcoming specialized exhibition that was initially scheduled to be held in 2023 in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. The

Bureau International des Expositions The Bureau international des expositions (BIE; English: International Bureau of Expositions) is an intergovernmental organization created to supervise international exhibitions (also known as expos or world expos) falling under the jurisdiction o ...

(BIE) awarded Buenos Aires as the host on November 15, 2017. This was to have been the first time that a BIE Expo was held in Argentina, and the first in Latin America since BIE's creation. The 1875 exposition was the last one held in Latin America. In October 2020, Argentina announced that due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina The COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). On 3 March 2020, the virus was confirmed to have spread to Argentina. As of , a t ...

and the ensuing financial crisis, the Expo would not be held as planned in 2023.

Overview

The expo was scheduled to take place between 15 January and 15 April 2023. The estimated number of visitors was 9.4 million, with 79% visiting for a day and 4% international visitors. Over 100 countries were expected to participate.

Theme

The exhibition will have a theme of “Science, Innovation, Art and Creativity for Human Development. Creative Industries in Digital Convergence”. It will have three sub themes: "How digital convergence reshapes the creative industries and everyday life", "Socio-economic impacts of the creative industries in digital convergence", and "Cultural impacts of the creative industries in digital convergence".

Preparation

Building works

The expo called for proposals for six building works as part of a "Architectural ideas Competition". There were 200 submissions from over 2000 participants. The projects were for the Argentine Pavilion; Mini Stadium and International Pavilion; International Pavilions; Antenna and Viewpoint; Thematic Pavilions; and Public Space, Boulevard and Bridge. The second for the “Small Stadium and the International Pavilions Building” which was to update two existing buildings and to creating a connecting foyer. Walter Casola was the winning architect for this. The sixth project for public spaces includes a bridge to cross the

Avenida General Paz Avenida General Paz (official name Ruta Nacional A001 - National Route A001) is a beltway freeway surrounding the city of Buenos Aires. Roughly following the boundary between the city and Buenos Aires Province, it is one of the few motorways in ...

linking two parts of the exposition ground and act as future legacy. The winning architects are Rodrigo Grassi; María Hojman; Karla Montauti; and Pablo Pschepiurca.

Recognition

The "Recognition Dossier" for the Argentine expo was submitted to the BIE on 14 January 2019. On 14 October 2020 the government told the BIE that they will not be able to host as planned and need more time.

Candidature

There were two other bids to host the specialized exhibition.

Łódź Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of canti ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

submitted the bid with a “City Re:Invented” theme on 15 June 2016. And

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

submitted a bid with theme “Healthy People, Healthy Planet: Wellness and Well Being for All”. A secret ballot took place to select the winner at BIE's 162nd General Assembly on 15 November 2017. The first ballot awarded 46 votes to both Buenos Aires and Łódź, with Minneapolis gathering only 25 (and 1 abstention). This meant that Minneapolis was eliminated and a second round ballot held which gave 62 votes to Buenos Aires and 56 to Łódź.

References

{{List of world's fairs in South America World's fairs in Argentina Events in Buenos Aires Future events 2023 in Argentina 2020s in Buenos Aires