A look ahead of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland on January 15, 2024.
Adam Galese | CNBC
LONDON – It's that time of year when the great and the good gather for the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
A host of heads of state, politicians and business tycoons are set to attend the four-day event in the Alpine resort – but what may be more telling is which leaders are avoiding the forum.
While Donald Trump, who will be inaugurated as US President on Monday, is expected to address the forum via live video link on Thursday, a number of key leaders will be completely absent from the event.
These include Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chinese President Xi Jinping, as well as French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian leader Giorgia Meloni, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Among the Group of Seven industrialized nations (G7) – which includes the United States, Europe's largest economies, Canada and Japan – the only head of state to attend the summit in person is outgoing German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
The World Economic Forum says this year's event – the 55th annual forum, which runs from Monday to Thursday – will bring together nearly 3,000 leaders from more than 130 countries, with the gathering demonstrating “the urgent need for dialogue in an increasingly uncertain era.” The report notes that 350 government leaders, including 60 heads of state and government, “will meet in Davos-Klosters to address pressing challenges and shape emerging opportunities.”
People walk past the big screen during a speech by US President Donald Trump on January 26, 2018 at the Davos Congress Center (C), venue of the annual World Economic Forum (WEF), in the city of Davos, eastern Switzerland. / AFP PHOTO / MIGUEL MEDINA (Photo source should read MIGUEL MEDINA / AFP via Getty Images)
Miguel Medina | AFP | Getty Images
The theme of the event is “Cooperation for the Smart Age,” with the agenda focusing on five key areas: reimagining growth, industries in the smart age, investing in people, protecting agriculture, and rebuilding trust.
But not all world leaders will be there to discuss these issues.
“The leaders of Brazil, China and India, who gave keynote speeches 10 years ago, are not there now. Russia has not been welcomed for several years. Keir Starmer will not be there. Macron will not be there.” “There is,” Jan-Aart Schulte, professor of global transformations and governance challenges at Leiden University, told CNBC on Thursday.
“It is true that the Prime Minister of Spain will be there and there are two others, but the general picture of the heads of state and government that are there is that they are not the big players. I think if you go through that G20 list, there will be a small minority (who will attend).”
There is often no official reason not to participate in the World Economic Forum, but pressing domestic problems – ranging from slowing economic growth to political crises – have been known to keep heads of government at home.
Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks during the opening plenary session of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Tuesday, January 17, 2017.
Jason Alden | Bloomberg | Getty Images
In recent years, there has also been some ambivalence about attending an event that has been accused of being elitist and out of touch with reality.
CNBC has contacted the World Economic Forum for comment. The Forum has repeatedly stated that it provides a space where stakeholders from across business, government, academia, civil society, media and the arts can “meet on a global, neutral and non-profit platform”.
These people “come together to find common ground and seize opportunities to make a positive difference on major global issues,” the report says.
Who will be there?
A number of big names will continue to join this year's summit – an event that began in 1971 under the patronage of Klaus Schwab, who remained CEO of the event until the beginning of this year.
Deng Xuexiang, Chinese Vice Premier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Argentine Prime Minister Javier Miley, and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa are scheduled to deliver speeches in Davos this week.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will also attend, as will the leaders of global organizations such as the International Monetary Fund, the United Nations, the World Health Organization and the World Trade Organization.
Ursula von der Leyen reacts after being selected as President of the European Commission for a second term, at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, July 18, 2024.
Joanna Giron | Reuters
It will be a priority for participants to “understand what is on the mind of the leaders in Davos,” Sven Smit, a senior partner at McKinsey & Company, a strategic partner of the World Economic Forum, said in online comments.
“You can't predict it completely,” Smit said. “There are themes that people suggest, ranging from growth to sustainability, but what comes out as a Davos theme is not entirely predictable, and that's the interesting part.”
However, in recent years, many Western institutions have found themselves on the wrong side of the campaign against globalization by populist leaders like Trump, and countries like Russia and China.
Schulte noted that the World Economic Forum also fell foul of this anti-establishment trend, and although the presence of leaders like Trump may not have been required in the past, there is now an acceptance that the world has changed.
“I don’t think the promoters of a liberal and open global economy speak with as much contempt, let’s say, for opposing forces and viewpoints as they might have done, say, before the global financial crisis,” he said.
“I think there's more humility. No, sometimes it doesn't quite work. And no, we haven't always adequately taken into account those who feel left out of this.”
However, he stressed that the World Economic Forum still attracts many business and political leaders.
“There are various indicators that a site like the World Economic Forum is not as strong a magnet as it was two decades ago,” Schulte said. “But the idea that it is no longer a magnet, and the idea that it also does not have certain areas in global economic governance where it can remain very strong, I think that would be a mistake.”
