This annual edition of the World Economic Forum was to be held in August in Singapore, but the organizers finally canceled as the city-state, so far little affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, announced a series last week. restrictions to stem a recent increase in the number of cases.
The World Economic Forum, known as the Davos Forum, is canceling the 2021 edition to be held in Singapore, its organizers announced on Monday, adding that the next meeting will not take place until the first half of 2022
The place, but also the final date will be determined later, depending on a reassessment of the situation during the summer, said the organizers of this event which usually brings together the top of politics, finance and diplomacy in the posh Swiss Alps resort of Davos.
This annual edition of the World Economic Forum (WEF) was to be held in August in Singapore, but the organizers finally canceled as the city-state, so far little affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, announced the week latest a series of restrictions to curb a recent surge in the number of cases.
“It was a difficult decision, not least because of the great interest of our partners in coming together not only virtually, but also in person, to contribute to a more resilient, more inclusive and more sustainable world,” said Prof. Klaus Schwab, its founder and executive chairman, cited in the press release.
“But at the end of the day, the health and safety of everyone involved remains our top priority,” he added.
The organizers of the Forum canceled this edition, citing in particular the uncertain prospects for travel, the implementation of vaccination strategies at different speeds as well as the uncertainty around the new variants that “make it today. impossible to organize an international meeting bringing together leaders of companies, governments and civil society on the scale initially envisaged ”, specifies the press release.
With the health crisis, the organizers of the Forum first decided to move the event elsewhere in Switzerland, on the summits of Bürgenstock, near Lucerne, before opting for Singapore in the face of the surge in infections in the Alpine country. during the fall.
The date of the Singapore edition, which was to allow participants to meet on site, initially scheduled for the end of May, had however already been postponed for the first time. It was finally to be held from August 17 to 20.
In January, the WEF nevertheless organized a virtual summit devoted to the major topics of the moment, including the pandemic and vaccine nationalism or the economic crisis.
