By Jamie Roz
THE World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2022, which is being held in Davos, Switzerland, from May 22 to 26, is bringing together government, business, and civil society leaders from all over the world. The WEF embarked on a landmark initiative to strengthen global collaboration using interactive technology of the Metaverse to drive inclusive impact at scale.
Against the backdrop of a global economy that is recovering from the devastating Covid-19 pandemic, unbridled inflation and plummeting stock markets, as well as the war in Ukraine, it is ironic that the theme for this year’s annual event is “History at a Turning Point”. The event hosts about 2 000 delegates, including 90 billionaires, this year.
South African government delegates should use the platform to address long-standing economic, environmental, political, and sociological difficulties, as well as security issues, while also reinforcing the foundations of a safe global system.
The chairman of Sekunjalo Investment Holdings (SIH), Dr Iqbal Survé, when asked what it meant to attend WEF this year, said it was important for all to present South Africa in an incredibly positive light.
Dr Survé said that his attendance at WEF had nothing to do with the government. “The government is only allowed to bring its president and a few delegates. In fact, what happens is that the government delegation meets with the business delegation at the WEF, and together, we meet with international businesses to sing the praises of our country and to invite them to invest in our country and continent.
“This is the single most important opportunity, at one place, and at one time, to speak to the world’s largest top tier or top 100 corporations. Some of the world’s richest people and some of the most intelligent and wisest people are attending. It is an opportunity to present your country united at its best so that international investors are encouraged to invest in South Africa and the African continent through the WEF messaging system.
“The Sekunjalo Group has been invited to attend the WEF for more than 10 years. Our participation in WEF meant that we were able to ensure that the Davos, or the Summer Davos, increasingly had an African flavour attached to it.
“It is sad that the participants of today’s WEF from South Africa are almost exclusively the established corporations, such as the banks, mining houses and exceptionally large corporations,” Dr Survé said.
The Sekunjalo chairman noted that there were almost no black business people at this year’s WEF. “And I think that it's quite sad because we are not seen to be representing our country in relation to other African countries. One might argue that many Black South African companies or corporations do not meet the criteria to become WEF members. Nonetheless, we who are here, continue to carry the flag for our country.”
Notably, President Cyril Ramaphosa is not attending the WEF.
Survé said: “Sadly, the future of our country, with its exorbitant fuel prices; high inflation, and mortgage rates; thousands of impoverished people; and an ever-increasing rate of unemployment, appears not to be what keeps the president awake at night.”