La vida después de la Expo

Gracias a aragonéname he encontrado este artículo de un diario coreano que habla de improvisación y falta de preparación en la Expo:

(traducción al español)

The World Expo Zaragoza 2008 kicked off last Saturday and will be held for the next three months under the theme "Water and Sustainable Development."

Korea’s Yeosu is especially interested in the Spanish city of Zaragoza’s challenge and success. In May, Chang Seung-woo, chairman of the organizing committee for the Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea, toured Zaragoza and signed a memorandum of understanding. Last year in Paris I witnessed the selection of Yeosu as the host city of the 2012 Expo, so I traveled to Zaragoza to report on the 2008 Expo as it opened since it seemed to have a connection with Korea.

An international event of this scale was truly a godsend that could answer the long-cherished dreams of the people of the host region. With the hosting of the Expo, Zaragoza has undergone a transformation following hefty investments.

Zaragoza is located 300 km northeast of the Spanish capital of Madrid. Even though it’s not a rural area, the Aragon region where Zaragoza is located is among the country’s least-developed areas. With the hosting of the Expo, the central government built a high-speed railway, while private sector investments refurbished surrounding areas so that Zaragoza has become a major transportation artery, now just an hour and a half from Madrid or Barcelona on the Alta Velocidad Española (AVE), or Spanish High Speed train.

The city’s landscape has changed too. Just two years ago the banks of the river Ebro, west of Zaragoza where the Expo is being held, was just a vast farmland. But a beautiful bridge, gleaming exhibition halls and buildings boasting cutting-edge designs as well as a water park have been created.

Yet despite such magnificent changes in its appearance, a lack of preparation in several areas has been a source of both frustration and disappointment. A flood in May compounded by a labor strike has left noticeably unfinished buildings here and there. It was extremely difficult to find English-speaking people among the 14,000 volunteers and staff there. That’s why I had to waste a lot of time standing under the scorching sun, moving from one spot to another like a ping pong ball in order to get a single press card issued. The interpretation devices the organizers passed out to foreign guests at the pre-opening ceremony, attended by the King of Spain, failed to work. The "International Press Center" was international in name only -- the press briefings and press releases were for domestic consumption.

Zaragoza Expo organizers expect six million tourists to visit over the three-month duration of the event. When I met Carlos Perez, first deputy mayor of Zaragoza, I asked him how many foreign tourists he expected. Thirty percent, he said. Then I asked him how many of the event’s 14,000 volunteers can speak foreign languages. He was unable to answer.

Competition is fierce in Korea to host international events. With regional economies withering, provinces that have been unable to find new growth engines stand to receive huge budget allocations if they succeed in hosting an international event, while getting a chance to advance.

That’s the Yeosu I saw in Paris last year. Yeosu had initiated the bid, but in the final stretch the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade mobilized its international diplomatic offices and went on a lobbying offensive. But watching the Zaragoza Expo, I wondered just how effective an expo can be in drawing foreign tourists. Just how many foreigners would be willing to buy expensive airplane tickets and fly all the way to Yeosu just to see the expo?

But for provincial governments, the hosting of international events should not end up being just a magnet for government budget allocations, like winning the lottery. That’s because other provinces may end up being left out.

The Yeosu Expo should be linked to other parts of Korea. Neighboring regions and indeed places across the country should come up with tourism products and services that are linked to Yeosu and take a cooperative approach to drawing more tourists.

This column was contributed by Kang Kyung-hee, the Chosun Ilbo’s correspondent in Paris.