Annual World Economic Forum Conference at Davos

Why is it in news?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to lead the Indian delegation at the annual World Economic Forum Conference at Davos, Switzerland.

Details

  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi will showcase India as one of the key engines of global economic growth and outline the reforms his administration has carried out to make Asia’s third-largest economy a seamless and more investor-friendly market at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meetings beginning in Davos.
  • Narendra Modi will be the first prime minister to represent India at the forum in over 20 years. The last visit by an Indian prime minister to Davos was in 1997 when Deve Gowda led the Indian delegation.
  • Modi is expected to “articulate his vision of how he sees the Indian economy contributing not only to the benefit of the people of India but also on a global scale”.
  • Modi is also expected to talk about “a new, young and innovative India” besides his experiences with “cooperative federalism”. He is also expected to urge world leaders gathered in Davos for a unified approach to deal with terrorism, economic imbalances and cyber threats.
  • Besides addressing the WEF, Modi will sit down for a round table dinner organized for interaction with 60 CEOs, including some from India.
  • Mr. Modi is also expected to have separate bilateral meetings with the President of the Swiss Confederation H. E. Mr. Alain Bersetand Prime Minister of Sweden H. E. Mr. Stefan Lofven.
  • The theme of this year is, “Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World”.
  • Other world leaders expected to be at the WEF include German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime Minister Theresa May and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

About World Economic forum

  • The World Economic Forum (WEF) is a Swiss nonprofit foundation, based in Cologny, Geneva, Switzerland. Recognized by the Swiss authorities as an international body, its mission is cited as "committed to improving the state of the world by engaging business, political, academic, and other leaders of society to shape global, regional, and industry agendas".
  • The Forum is best known for its annual meeting at the end of January in Davos,
  • The organization also convenes some six to eight regional meetings each year in locations across Africa, East Asia, and Latin America, and holds two further annual meetings in China and the United Arab Emirates. Beside meetings, the foundation produces a series of research reports and engages its members in sector-specific initiatives.
  • The forum also has offices in New York, Beijing and Tokyo. The World Economic Forum strives to be impartial and is not tied to any political, partisan, or national interests. Until 2012, it had observer status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council; it is under the supervision of the Swiss Federal Council. The foundation's highest governance body is the foundation board.
  • The foundation is funded by its 1,000 member companies, typically global enterprises with more than five billion dollars in turnover (varying by industry and region).
  • Global Competitiveness Report (GCR), Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report, Global Information Technology Report are some of the important reports published by WEF annually.

About Annual World Economic Forum Conference at Davos

 

  • It is the flagship event of WEF. It is an invitation-only annual meeting held during the winter at the end of January in Davos, Switzerland, bringing together chief executive officers from its 1,000 member companies, as well as selected politicians, representatives from academia, NGOs, religious leaders, and the media in an alpine winter environment.
  • The town is small enough to allow participants to meet anywhere outside the sessions and allows them the greatest opportunities to attend receptions organized by companies and countries.
  • The participants are also taking part in role playing events, such as the Investment Heat Map. Informal winter meetings may have led to as many ideas and solutions as the official sessions.
  • Approximately 2,200 participants gather for the five-day event and attend some of the 220 sessions in the official programme. The winter discussions focus around key issues of global concern (such as the globalization, capital markets, wealth management, international conflicts, environmental problems and their possible solutions).

Source

Livemint

Posted by Jawwad Kazi on 22nd Jan 2018