The Davos Whirl
Commentary | February 04, 2011
The World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, was upstaged by events in Egypt and Tunisia, EWI board member Ikram Sehgal writes in his weekly article in The News, but its central themes were quite apt: “Shared Norms for the New Reality.”
“The erosion of common values is growing in a world that is increasingly becoming more complex and interconnected as well as undermining public trust in leadership, future economic growth and political stability,” Sehgal writes.
In heated discussions about terrorism, Indian and Pakistani representatives were, as often is the case, very much at odds with each other—and Sehgal was disappointed with the Indian contributions. But he admires the way the Indian private sector is leveraging its Davos contacts, suggesting Pakistani businessmen should do the same. He also reflects on the possible implications of the Egyptian military’s response to the protests in that country for the Pakistani military.
Many of the world’s leaders including President Sarkozy, Chancellor Merkel, President Medvedev and former U.S. President Bill Clinton addressed panels at Davos. Sehgal concludess: “Davos provides a unique platform for leaders of governments, civil society, industry and the media as well as a wide spectrum of decision-makers to trade ideas on how to solve common pressing problems.”