The Bureau of International Expositions passed the registration report of the 2010 Shanghai World Expo yesterday.

Approval by the 138 member countries at their congress in Shanghai signifies the "Chinese design" of the 2010 Expo is officially recognized and supported by the world, experts said.

In line with the international exposition pacts, the country that hosts the World Expo must submit its registration report to the BIE five years ahead.

The country will not have the legal rights to host the exposition and send invitations to the participants unless the  report is passed.

The report consists of eight chapters and six legal attachments, specifically defining the legal position and financial moves of the Shanghai World Expo, including the name, the theme, the duration and the related commercial operation.

"With the registration report being passed, the preparation work of the Shanghai World Expo will step into a pragmatic stage," said Zhou Hanmin, deputy director of the exposition's coordination bureau.

Zhou said China will now launch the projects to absorb investment and participants to the exposition, while all the plans, construction and financial operation will be performed strictly in line with the registration report.

The registration report also hopes to attract more than 200 countries and international organizations and at least 70 million visitors from home and abroad, a record number in Expo history.

China has promised to encourage attendance of the developing countries by providing financial aid of US$100 million.

(Xinhua News Agency December 2, 2005)