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ZURICH (REUTERS) – The World Economic Forum (WEF) will be held in Singapore instead of Switzerland next year, as the Covid-19 pandemic would make it difficult to ensure the health and safety of participants in Europe, said the president of the WEF, Borge Brende, in a statement. email on Monday (December 7).
The WEF’s decision to host the high-profile event in Asia for the first time reflects its confidence in Singapore’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement. The move will have a positive impact on mice in Singapore and related sectors, he added.
The in-person physical meeting in Singapore will be the first global leadership event to address the global recovery from the pandemic, the WEF said in a statement, adding that it will bring together leaders to focus on shaping solutions to the most challenging challenges. urgent of the world.
The WEF also said the change of location reflects the forum’s priority of safeguarding the health and safety of participants and the host community. After careful consideration, and in light of the current situation regarding Covid-19 cases, it was decided that Singapore was in the best position to host the meeting.
“The board of directors made a very important decision today to move the 2021 Special Annual Meeting to Singapore (May 13-16),” Brende said in the email obtained by Reuters.
“We had planned to organize our 2021 annual meeting in Lucerne-Burgenstock this spring. Unfortunately, the current Covid-19 situation in Europe makes it unlikely that we will be able to create the necessary conditions to ensure the health and safety of our staff, participants and the community in general, “said Brende.
“Singapore has been successful in dealing with the pandemic,” he said.
In a statement emailed to The Straits Times on Monday, the ministry also noted that the health and safety of people living in Singapore and those attending the event remain its top priority.
At large-scale events, protocols will be implemented that include safe management measures, such as on-arrival tests, pre-event and periodic antigen tests, as well as follow-up of attendees’ contacts.
“All international conferences held in Singapore will similarly adhere to strict public health and safety measures,” the MTI statement said, adding that such measures had been successfully tested at recent events such as the International Energy Week of Singapore 2020 and TravelRevive 2020.
Normally held at the Davos ski resort every January, the 2021 edition was postponed due to the pandemic and was originally scheduled for May at the Buergenstock resort in Lucerne.
The annual meeting typically draws political leaders, including US President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, as well as a parade of billionaires, executives and celebrities to discuss global challenges.
“A global leadership summit is critically important to address how we can recover together,” said Klaus Schwab, founder and CEO of WEF.
“The 2021 Special Annual Meeting will be a place for leaders from business, government and civil society to meet in person for the first time since the start of the global pandemic. Public-private cooperation is more necessary than ever to rebuild trust and address the failures that emerged in 2020 ”.
The forum will host a virtual event from January 25 to 29 to rebuild trust and shape the principles, policies and partnerships necessary for 2021, the WEF said in the statement, adding that the special meeting will return to Davos-Klosters in Switzerland. in 2022.
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