Is the World Economic Forum still relevant?

Experts weigh in on how much value actually Davos provides to the global community.

Representatives of governments and international organisations, billionaires, entrepreneurs, experts, academics, NGOs and press corps are once again descending on the Graubunden winter sports resort in Davos, Switzerland.

Under the motto “Rebuilding Trust”, the 54th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) will start on January 15, aiming to discuss “the basic principles of trust” – transparency, coherence and responsibility.

But the ongoing fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic as well as from new conflicts around the globe may make it difficult to rebuild trust in institutions. And these days, the relevance of the WEF itself is often up for debate.

High-level attendees at the annual gathering have thinned in recent years with key names like US President Joe Biden missing. In 2023, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was the only leader of a G7 country who attended.

“Leaders do not lose interest in forums such as the WEF, but they do make strategic decisions about whether it would be beneficial to attend the meeting each year,” Peter Willetts, emeritus professor of global politics at City, University of London, said.