A Historic Opportunity To Foster A Lasting Legacy

Khalid Elgibali, Mastercard’s Division President for MENA, explains how the company is leveraging Expo 2020 Dubai as a platform to build an inclusive and connected future.

At Mastercard, innovation is part of our DNA. For more than 50 years, we have been harnessing the power of technology to expand financial inclusion and the digital economy in a way that helps society thrive. Partnering with Expo 2020 Dubai as its Official Payment Technology Partner provides us with exhilarating new possibilities as the world comes together to explore, collaborate, and innovate. It is an opportunity to share our vision, build a bridge to the future, and transport millions of visitors to a reality that is far closer than we imagine.

The setting is important. Expo 2020 Dubai is where the game-changing technologies of tomorrow are explored and unveiled, and for us, it is a chance to showcase and explore the innovations defining tomorrow’s digital economy as well as the sustainable growth it can unlock.

Through our partnership with Expo 2020 Dubai, we are demonstrating our vision for a connected tomorrow to millions of visitors. Inside the immersive Mastercard Cube, visitors get a first-hand glimpse of a future beyond payment cards, and a multi-sensory experience that demonstrates the power of technology to enable and connect them to the things that matter most.

A meaningful legacy

Expo 2020 Dubai is a unique opportunity for the public and private sectors to come together and make a lasting difference. The event will explore what the future of the human race and our planet looks like. It hosts a Sustainability District that shows how humans can enjoy harmony with nature in a high-tech future, a Mobility District that explores new possibilities for smarter movement, and an Opportunity District that seeks to unlock our potential.

So much of Mastercard’s work revolves around these themes, and at the heart of our business is the ethos of “Doing Well by Doing Good”. We believe that by supporting our communities, our partners, and our planet, we are enabling a virtuous cycle that allows us to do well as a company.

Environmental responsibility will take center stage at the mega event. Mastercard’s Priceless Planet Coalition is spearheading change on this front, and we’re honored that Expo 2020 Dubai has joined the coalition as a strategic partner. This global partnership activates joint efforts to address climate change with the pledge to restore 100 million trees by 2025. At the Expo 2020 Dubai site, we have built a Priceless Planet installation to bring sustainability to life and offer visitors a chance to play their part.

The economic legacy

There is of course an economic legacy to consider too. Economic sustainability is critically important to achieving so many of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, and the importance of small businesses is rightly highlighted at Expo 2020 Dubai. After all, empowered SMEs are tomorrow’s job creators and wealth generators —not to mention inventors, innovators, and entrepreneurs.

Mastercard is making it easier, faster, and more affordable to set up a business by creating innovative products and solutions designed to help SMEs scale and grow. At Expo 2020 Dubai, we will be amplifying this support for businesses through a program of knowledge sharing, access to digital tools, mentorships, partnership programs, and a deeper understanding of the value of digital payments. During the pandemic, Mastercard committed $250 million in support of SMEs around the world through digital tools and training—because when small and potentially vulnerable businesses survive and succeed during difficult times, we all benefit.

21st century skills for all

Unlocking economic opportunity through business success is only part of the story. A great deal of Mastercard’s strategy for inclusive growth revolves around youth, and widening access to STEM subjects at school and as careers. Our Girls4Tech initiative inspires and prepares young girls for careers in science and technology and equips them with 21st-century workplace skills. Through the partnership between Mastercard and the Expo School Program team, we have committed to reaching 2,020 girls across the U.A.E. before the conclusion of Expo 2020 Dubai.

Underscoring our commitment to creating a more equitable future, we have also teamed up with the region’s largest network for women-owned businesses, Female Fusion, to unlock opportunities for women entrepreneurs.

Our shared legacy

Over many decades, Mastercard has pioneered technologies and driven change through innovation and the exponential power of strategic partnerships. We invite everyone to join us in helping build a more open, inclusive, and connected world. Being a force for good and delivering positive, lasting change is an exciting prospect—and an opportunity we can all embrace.

“Inside the immersive Mastercard Cube, visitors get a first-hand glimpse of a future.”