China Reigns in Davos

The 40^th World Economic Forum started working in Davos on January 27. Russia’s Vladimir Putin opened the forum last year, but neither Russian, nor US leaders are going to attend the event this year.

This year the forum pays special attention to developing countries – over 30 impressive delegations arrived in Davos to take part in the forum.

There will be no top officials from Britain, Germany and other key members of the European Union. Russia’s delegation – 58 people – is chaired by Finance Minister Aleksey Kudrin.

About 2,500 officials and businessmen from all over the world are expected to arrive in Davos for the forum.

Russia will not be a key subject for discussion at the forum. China will take one of the most important places: the world’s fastest-growing economy will have two separate sessions. The summit will discuss the role of Beijing as USA’s chief creditor and China’s growing role in world economy.

The World Economic Forum was founded in 1971 by Klaus M. Schwab, a business professor in Switzerland. Beyond meetings, the Forum produces a series of research reports and engages its members in sector specific initiatives. The Forum is headquartered in Cologny, Geneva, Switzerland. The Forum is funded by its 1000 member companies.

The typical member company is a global enterprise with more than five billion dollars in turnover, although the latter can vary by industry and region. In addition, these enterprises rank among the top companies within their industry and/or country and play a leading role in shaping the future of their industry and/or region. The meeting in the Swiss alpine resort brings together CEOs from the Forum’s 1000 member companies as well as selected politicians, representatives from academia, NGOs, religious leaders and the media.

Participation at the Annual Meeting is by invitation only. Around 2200 participants gather for the five-day event and attend some 220 sessions in the official program. The discussions focus around key issues of global concern (such as international conflicts, poverty and environmental problems) and possible solutions. In all about 500 journalists from online, print, radio and TV take part in the Annual Meeting. The media has access to all of the sessions in the official program, some of which are also webcast.