The World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting is being held in Davos, Switzerland from January 20 to 24, and convenes global leaders to address key global and regional challenges.
These include responding to geopolitical shocks, stimulating growth to improve living standards, and stewarding a just and inclusive energy transition.
The WEF is the International Organisation for Public-Private Cooperation and provides a global, impartial and not-for-profit platform for meaningful connection between stakeholders to establish trust and build initiatives for cooperation and progress.
What does this mean?
Essentially, WEF engages political, business, academic, civil society and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.
The forum was established in 1971 as a not-for-profit foundation and argued that it is independent, impartial and not tied to any special interests. WEF said that it tries to uphold the highest standards of governance and moral and intellectual integrity.
“At the heart of our mission of improving the state of the world lies the belief in the power of human ingenuity, entrepreneurship, innovation and cooperation. We recognise the need for a forum fostering rigorous and respectful dialogue between and among leaders with different beliefs and viewpoints, where diversity of thought is respected and all voices can be heard,” according to the organisation.
South Africa's strategy at the World Economic Forum
The Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Parks Tau said that WEF is a platform for South Africa to show that it is addressing the challenges facing the economy.
The minister said that WEF provides an opportunity for government and business leaders to present SA in a new and accurate light.
“I think that there is a great prospect for us to ensure that we present the South African story for what it is, not what we hope it is, but what it is,” he explained.
“And it doesn't suggest that there aren’t difficulties in the country. We say we’re confronting the difficulties. We’re working on resolving the issues, growing the economy and addressing our challenges,” Tau added.
He emphasised that WEF is an important meeting and cannot be underestimated.
“If you look at the individual diaries of the individuals that would be there, it is quite extensive the number of people and influential business and government leaders that would be engaging,” the minister said.
“If you were to quantify the value of the engagements, I think it's quite extensive because the people that you would be engaging with (and they) would be looking at you as a potential investment destination or increasing their investments in the country.”
Social partners
President Cyril Ramaphosa said that WEF provided a venue for government to showcase its commitment to work with all social partners in pursuit of inclusive growth that benefits all South Africans and leaves no one behind.
Ramaphosa and his delegation will attend the annual meeting in Davos where he will be outlining South Africa’s priorities for its G20 Presidency.
“One of the messages we will be taking to Davos is our ongoing commitment to partnerships in pursuit of inclusive growth and sustainable development,” he explained.
“We will present our experiences of cooperation across society in South Africa and encourage greater emphasis on partnerships in international relations. In particular, we will make a call for global companies to partner with governments, entrepreneurs and stakeholders in emerging markets to pursue sustainable and inclusive growth,” the president added.
Partnership is key
One of the main themes Ramaphosa is pushing at WEF is “partnership” and said that the Government of National Unity (GNU)is committed to reaching out across society to find solutions to the challenges the country faces, and government has placed partnership at the centre of its work, citing Operation Vulindlela as a shining example of partnerships within the state making a significant impact.
This initiative has united government departments and public institutions to drive focused reforms in critical areas like energy, logistics, telecommunications, and water infrastructure, he added.
He hoped that WEF could be a global platform to initiate and pull leaders together to make lasting partnerships that would lead to the betterment of all involved.
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