World Economic Forum announces theme and details for next year's meeting in Davos

World Economic Forum announces theme and details for next year's meeting in Davos. FILE IMAGE/ANA

World Economic Forum announces theme and details for next year's meeting in Davos. FILE IMAGE/ANA

Published Oct 17, 2019

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CAPE TOWN  – The World Economic Forum on Thursday announced the theme and details for its annual meeting, to be held next year in Davos, Switzerland.

The 50th anniversary of the institution will be held under the theme “Stakeholders for a Cohesive and Sustainable World” on January 21-24, and will bring together about 3,000 participants from around the world, and aim to give concrete meaning to “stakeholder capitalism”.

The summit will also assist governments and international institutions in tracking progress towards the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals, and facilitate discussions on technology and trade governance, said the organisers.

“People are revolting against the economic ‘elites’ they believe have betrayed them, and our efforts to keep global warming limited to 1.5°C are falling dangerously short,” said Professor Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of WEF.  

“With the world at such critical crossroads, this year we must develop a ‘Davos Manifesto 2020’ to reimagine the purpose and scorecards for companies and governments. It is what the World Economic Forum was founded for 50 years ago, and it is what we want to contribute to for the next 50 years,” he added.

The programme for the meeting will prioritise key areas, which include, among others, Ecology, Economy, Technology and  Industry. The Forum’s first meeting in 1971 was established to further the idea put forward by Professor Schwab that business should serve all stakeholders, customers, employees, communities, as well as shareholders. 

It was reaffirmed in 1973 in the “Davos Manifesto,” a document that has shaped the work of the Forum ever since. 

In a major update, this year’s meeting will see the publication of a universal “ESG scorecard” by the Forum’s International Business Council, which is currently chaired by Brian Moynihan, Chief Executive Officer of Bank of America.

- African News Agency (ANA) 

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