Thailand lobbies hard to host 2028 Specialised Expo in Phuket

Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said this at a meeting with the private sector on Monday that Thailand launched a bid for the 2028 event to be held in Phuket during the Specialised Expo in Paris last year.

The minister was meeting big companies at the Queen Sirikit Convention Centre to seek support for the 2028 Specialised Expo.

The Bureau of International Exposition (BIE) will announce the host of the event in June. There are five contenders, namely Thailand, the US, Argentina, Serbia and Spain.

“We are urging 171 BIE member countries to vote for Thailand," he said.

Anutin said the ministries of Public Health, Foreign, Commerce and Tourism and Sports, along with the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau, Tourism Authority of Thailand and Phuket authorities have been working on preparing the province over the past eight months. He added that BIE was satisfied with Phuket serving as a venue for the event, and its readiness.

He said he expects the 90-day expo to attract some 5 million visitors and generate about 50 billion baht in revenue.

Meanwhile, he said, the expo venue will eventually be turned into Thailand’s new international health and conference centre for medical tourists and businessmen.

Separately, government deputy spokesperson Traisulee Taisaranakul said the private sector will hold "Expo 2028 Phuket Thailand Symposia" in France on Wednesday to promote the country as host of the 2028 Specialised Expo.

Specialised Expos, held every five years, are global events designed to respond to a precise problem facing humanity.

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