The minister of the economy got stuck in and rolled up his sleeves to help break ground at the site. He was joined by head of the Luxembourg pavilion Maggy Nagel and Luxembourg ambassador to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Elisabeth Cardoso Jordão.Together with executive director of EXPO 2020, Najeeb Mohammed Al-Ali the trio launched the construction of the grand duchy’s pavilion, which will have the theme “Resourceful Luxembourg”. Luxembourg is the first country to start building its pavilion and was also the first county to confirm its participation in the world expo.  

According to a government communiqué, “the architecture of Luxembourg’s pavilion is inspired by the “Möbius ribbon, where modernity, technicality and originality will reflect the capacity of Luxembourg to reinvent itself, as well as its desire to focus on sustainable growth and respect natural resources.”

During the ceremony Schneider said, "Dubai is the first Arab city in the world to host a world exhibition that aims to welcome more than 25 million visitors, so the grand-ducal participation at EXPO 2020 Dubai is a unique opportunity to raise awareness of Luxembourg with all its strengths on the international scene and in particular in the Middle East.”