The January annual meeting of world leaders, billionaires and executives in Davos, Switzerland is postponed due to health and safety concerns related to Covid-19 and its new variant Omicron.
“The World Economic Forum will postpone its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, in light of continuing uncertainty regarding the Omicron outbreak”, the group said in a statement on Monday. “It is now planned for the beginning of the summer”, he added.
The event was scheduled from January 17 to 21 with the aim of addressing “Economic, environmental, political and social fault lines exacerbated by the pandemic”.
The organizers say that a series of online sessions on “The state of the world” will be organized instead, “To focus on developing solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges”.
The WEF said pandemic conditions had made “Extremely difficult” organizing an in-person global meeting next month, adding that the transmissibility of the omicron variant and its impact on travel and mobility had made a postponement necessary.
Switzerland has sharply increased its health restrictions since Monday, in an attempt not only to stem the 5th wave of Covid but also to limit, if possible, contamination linked to Omicron, which is spreading very quickly in the country.
The event takes place annually in Davos, a picturesque alpine ski resort, and is considered by many to be the cornerstone of international relations. It usually attracts government leaders, business leaders and activists from around the world to discuss global issues.
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