After a month since the opening of the 2010 Shanghai Expo , more than a million people have visited the Canada Pavilion, making it a centre of cultural and business exchange.
On June 2, International Trade Minister Peter Van Loan and Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty welcomed the one-millionth visitor to the pavilion, which was designed by Cirque du Soleil and built by SNC Lavalin.
It is one of the Expo’s largest pavilions and has received between 20,000 and 30,000 visitors a day.
About 5.5 million visitors are expected to visit the Canada Pavilion during the Expo, which concludes at the end of October.
Approximately 43,000 square feet of cedar wood covers the exterior of the three-floor pavilion, which includes showcases Vancouver and Montreal and examples of urban sustainability, Canadian cuisine and a conference centre for trade, investment and educational programs.
In October, Canada will host an Invest in Canada Week to attract foreign investment into the country.
Van Loan visited the Canada Pavilion as part of a four-day trade visit to China meeting with several Chinese government officials, including Gang Wan, China’s Minister of Science and Technology, and Xiuhong Ma, China’s vice-minister of commerce.
At the Canada Pavilion, Van Loan witnessed the signing of contracts between Canadian and Chinese companies involved in fibre optics, green technology, architecture and entertainment.
Over the weekend, Van Loan visited Japan to attend the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting of trade ministers.