UAE homeowners fly the Expo flag thanks to Emirati tweet

The Arabic hashtag, which means 'My house suports Expo' in Arabic, was launched by UAE national Sara Al Mushairi who is urging residents to get involved in the bid by placing a customised flag in front of their houses.

Rashid Aladidi hangs an Expo 2020 flag outside his home in Jumeirah in response to a Twitter hashtag urging supporters of Dubai's bid to do that. Razan Alzayani / The National

ABU DHABI // A Twitter campaign to support Dubai's bid to host Expo 2020 is receiving widespread support.

The Arabic hashtag “My house supports Expo” urges residents to be involved in the bid by placing a customised flag on top of their houses.

“I was thinking of a way to involve everyone in the expo,” said Sara Al Mushairi, the Emirati mother who launched the campaign.

“The UAE is a small country but has achieved so much in a short time. The purpose of the hashtag is to create national cohesion. An initiative in which we as citizens can all be part of.

"Supporting the Dubai Expo is not limited to the government, but it includes individuals too. We should contribute and support our government."

Her hashtag soon caught the attention of one of the city’s top officials.

Impressed by the concept, the Dubai police chief Lt Gen Dahi Khalfan ordered that 300 customised flags be made and distributed along Jumeirah road.

“When the chief retweeted my concept, the public reacted to it quickly,” said Mrs Al Mushairi, who works at Dubai Police HQ.

“His involvement was a great source of inspiration to everyone.”

The flags have been placed on advertisement boards, alongside the road and on top of a few houses.

“While driving down the Jumeirah road in Dubai, many expo flags can be seen,” she said.“I am waiting patiently to hear the result of the event. If Dubai wins, I don’t know what I would do out of joy.”

Rashid Al Adidi, 31 was among the supporters of Mrs Al Mushairi’s campaign.

He put up the flag on top of his house in Jumeirah and intends to keep it until the expo results are announced in Paris this month.

“This is something small from us to make our government happy,” he said. “We want Dubai to win the hosting of Expo and climb higher and higher.”

Anyone wishing to purchase the flags can either do them themselves through printing shops, or get it online where there are several Instagram accounts selling Expo accessories.