DAVOS: World leaders, top CEOs, technology innovators and heads of humanitarian organizations are arriving in the snow-laden Swiss town of Davos for the 2026 World Economic Forum, which organizers have called \u201cone of the highest-level gatherings in the event\u2019s history.\u201d<\/p>\n
Running from Jan. 19-23, this year\u2019s meeting will address a range of urgent geopolitical challenges from the war in Ukraine to mounting tensions in the Middle East, where multiple flashpoints in Gaza, Lebanon and the Red Sea have stoked fears of a wider regional escalation.<\/p>\n
Held under the theme \u201cA Spirit of Dialogue,\u201d the forum comes at a time of unprecedented global fragmentation, rising economic inequality and disruptive technological change, offering a platform to foster global cooperation to confront major uncertainties.<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s forum is expected to draw record levels of governmental participation, with 400 top political leaders, six G7 leaders, almost 850 of the world\u2019s top CEOs and chairs, and almost 100 leading unicorn and technology pioneers expected to attend.<\/p>\n
US President Donald Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron, Ukraine\u2019s President Volodymyr Zelensky, Egypt\u2019s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Syria\u2019s President Ahmad Al-Sharaa and Aziz Akhannouch, Morocco\u2019s head of government, are among 65 heads of state set to attend the high-profile event.<\/p>\n
The Saudi delegation, led by Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, will include Princess Reema Bandar Al-Saud, Saudi Arabia\u2019s ambassador to the US; Khalid Al-Falih, minister of investment; Bandar Alkhorayef, minister of industry and mineral resources; Ahmed Al-Khateeb, minister of tourism; Faisal Alibrahim, minister of economy and planning; Abdullah Al-Swaha, minister of communications and information technology; and Mohammed Al-Jadaan, minister of finance.<\/p>\n
The ministers will engage in dialogue with global leaders, while sharing the Kingdom\u2019s successful experiences under the Saudi Vision 2030, according to a statement by the ministry of economy and planning.<\/p>\n
On the sidelines of the WEF, the ministry will host the Saudi House pavilion for the second consecutive year, convening global thought leaders for more than 20 sessions focused on key trends and challenges shaping the world economy.<\/p>\n
Borge Brende, president and CEO of the WEF, said this year\u2019s meeting will be \u201cone of our most consequential,\u201d stressing that \u201cdialogue is not a luxury in times of uncertainty; it is an urgent necessity.\u201d<\/p>\n
The global forum \u201cwill provide a space for an unparalleled mix of global leaders and innovators to work through and look beyond divisions, gain insight into a fast-shifting global landscape, and advance solutions to today\u2019s and tomorrow\u2019s biggest and most pressing challenges,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
In its 56th edition, the meeting is expected to attract about 3,000 participants from more than 130 countries to navigate the major economic, geopolitical and technological forces reshaping the global landscape.<\/p>\n
Organizers said the meeting is centered around five pressing global challenges: Ways to foster cooperation in a contested world, unlock new sources of growth, better invest in people, responsibly deploy transformative technologies like generative AI and build prosperity within planetary boundaries, advancing secure energy, nature and water systems.<\/p>\n
A major focus will be on the unprecedented speed of innovation and technological advancement. The gathering will explore opportunities around artificial intelligence, biotechnology and clean energy.<\/p>\n
\u201cLeaders will share views from across sectors to help build the understanding needed to balance short-term priorities and immediate challenges with long-term value creation,\u201d said Mirek Dusek, WEF\u2019s managing director.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn an era where exponential technological innovation and geopolitical disruption are deeply intertwined, the need for constructive dialogue between policymakers and industry is clear.\u201d<\/p>\n
A report released by WEF on Wednesday identified geoeconomic confrontation as the top global risk this year, followed by interstate conflict, extreme weather, societal polarization and misinformation and disinformation.<\/p>\n
The Global Risks Report warned that \u201cthe new age of competition\u201d has intensified geopolitical, economic and geoeconomic risks, with uncertainty dominating the outlook.<\/p>\n
The forum will hold in-depth discussions and discuss insights of this year\u2019s Global Risks Report, Global Cooperation Barometer, the Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2026 and the latest edition of the Chief Economists Outlook.<\/p>\n
Saadia Zahidi, the WEF\u2019s managing director, said the key is \u201cto unlock growth, jobs and economic transformation that translate into progress for communities everywhere.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn a global economy shaped by technology, geoeconomics and demographics, the defining challenge will be whether opportunity is broadly shared or if growth remains sluggish and uneven,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DAVOS: World leaders, top CEOs, technology innovators and heads of humanitarian organizations are arriving in the snow-laden Swiss town of Davos for the 2026 World Economic Forum, which organizers have called \u201cone of the highest-level gatherings in the event\u2019s history.\u201d Running from Jan. 19-23, this year\u2019s meeting will address a range of urgent geopolitical challenges …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":92424,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-92410","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92410","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=92410"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92410\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":92425,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92410\/revisions\/92425"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/92424"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=92410"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=92410"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=92410"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}