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A high-profile delegation arrived in Paris on Friday from China on a mission to secure the right to hold the World Expo 2010 for Shanghai.
They will present the case to members at the 131th assembly of the Bureau of International Expositions (BIE), which is headquartered in the French capital.
The assembly is to convene on Tuesday.
Chinese State Councillor Wu Yi, Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan, Shanghai Mayor Chen Liangyu and some other senior officials are set to attend the assembly to demonstrate the importance the Chinese Government attaches to the global event.
"The Chinese Government will honour its commitments and the Chinese people are capable of making the 2010 World Expo the most successful, most wonderful and most unforgettable one in history," said President Jiang Zemin in March when meeting a BIE delegation.
Jiang said China will strictly abide by all commitments made in the bid submission if it wins. Around US$100 million will be set aside to help smaller participants in the expo.
"Grant us the honour, and we will reward the world with more splendour'' is the promise of Shanghai, which has spared no efforts to assure the international community that it will be the best host for 2010.
The six-month-long "Olympics" of economics, culture, science and technology will attract 70 million visitors -- the largest ever in the expo's history -- according to Gallup Research.
Covering 6,340 square kilometers (2,448 square miles), Shanghai has a population of 16 million. And within a 600-square-kilometer (232-sqare-mile) area, there are 365 million people, of whom 147 million are urban residents with stable and substantial income.
Continuous investment in its infrastructure and improvements in people's living standards have been made.
And Shanghai has promised to inject an additional US$3.5 billion into this eagerly awaited event.
The city has chosen a 400-hectare (988-acre) site along the Huangpu River for the event facilities, which is currently covered with factories, docks and worn-out residences.
The most favoured design is from France-based Architecture Studio. The creative layout has two eye-catching highlights: the ellipse-shaped canal that will enclose the exposition venues and flower bridges and esplanades that would connect pedestrians on either side of the river.
"To spotlight the theme -- better city, better life -- we are working on the plans to shut down the factories and move people into more spacious and comfortable houses," said Yu Sijia, chief of the city's urban planning department.
Yu and a group of experts are optimizing the design, mainly in terms of transportation solutions and exhibition halls being offered for rent.
Support has come from the whole country with the most vocal from the 25,000 people who are living in the area with no current drainage system, gas pipeline, cable TV -- let alone a museum or stadium.
They view the expo as a golden opportunity for them to relocate with the support of the government, enabling them to enjoy a better life.
``I am anxious about the good news from Paris,'' said 84-year-old Wu Lingen who has lived his entire life at the site.
``A successful bid would certainly bring dramatic changes to my life.''
(China Daily June 29, 2002)
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