PM Modi to deliver ‘State of the World’ address at WEF’s Davos agenda today

New Delhi, Jan 16: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver 'State of the World' special address at the World Economic Forum's Davos Agenda on 17th January, 2022 at 8:30 pm IST via video conferencing.

The virtual event will be held from 17th to 21st January 2022.

It will also be addressed by several Heads of State including Kishida Fumio, Prime Minister of Japan; Ursua von der Leyen, President of the European Commission; Scott Morrison, Prime Minister of Australia; Joko Widodo, President of Indonesia; Naftali Bennett, Prime Minister of Israel; Xi Jinping, President of the People's Republic of China among others.

The event will also witness participation of top industry leaders, international organizations and civil society, who will deliberate on critical challenges being faced by the world today and discuss how to address them.

This is the second consecutive year that the forum has had to host the summit digitally due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

"Davos Agenda 2022" will be the first global platform for key world leaders to share their visions for 2022. The event is being convened on the theme of "The State of the World."

Geneva-based WEF, which describes itself as an international organisation for public-private cooperation, said radically different pandemic experiences have exacerbated global divisions, while vaccine inequities, combined with new strains, have also slowed international economic recovery.

However, COVID-19 is only one of the critical global challenges which may become unmanageable unless world leaders prioritize proactive collaboration and therefore the Davos Agenda will focus on driving concerted action among key global stakeholders, it added.

Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, said, "Everyone hopes that in 2022 the COVID-19 pandemic, and the crises that accompanied it, will finally begin to recede. But major global challenges await us, from climate change to rebuilding trust and social cohesion.

"To address them, leaders will need to adopt new models, look long term, renew cooperation and act systemically. The Davos Agenda 2022 is the starting point for the dialogue needed for global cooperation in 2022." Through special addresses and panels with leaders of G20 economies and international organisations, the Davos Agenda 2022 will provide crucial insights into a range of critical challenges. Participants will hear first-hand how these leaders will drive action in these and other areas, the WEF said.

The summit will also mobilize government and business leaders, international organizations and civil society to share their outlook, insights and plans relating to the most urgent global issues such as climate change, social contracts and vaccine equity. These sessions will also provide a platform for a wider connection, enabling the global public to engage and be included in the conversation.

The world leaders expected to attend the event include WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, Special Presidential Envoy for Climate of the US John F Kerry, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde and WTO Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

The Davos Agenda 2022 will also mark the launch of several WEF initiatives to accelerate the race to net-zero emissions, the economic opportunity of nature-positive solutions and cyber resilience.

Other launches on a diverse range of critical topics will also take place between January 17-21 and these include strengthening the resilience of global value chains, building economies in fragile markets through humanitarian investing, bridging the vaccine manufacturing gap and using data solutions to prepare for the next pandemic.