A pathway to shaping future governments

▶ At the World Governments Summit this week, key global issues will be on the agenda

For the past 10 years, the convening of industry leaders and policymakers in the UAE for the annual World Governments Summit has received wide attention. That is to be expected when heads of states, Nobel Prize winners, artists and philanthropists gather to talk about pressing issues on the global agenda.

As President Sheikh Mohamed said yesterday: “The World Governments Summit is the UAE’s responsible invitation to the whole world, to join the dialogue, share knowledge and invest in new ideas and creative energies.”

The three-day conference, beginning in Dubai today, will once again provide a platform for some of the world’s leading thinkers to discuss what’s in the pipeline in AI, education, energy, finance, transport, smart mobility, and the challenges and solutions in those fields. Just last month Mohammed Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs and chairman of the World Governments Summit, said that the world economy, researchers and knowledge will change because of AI.

The discussions and ministerial meetings during the course of the summit have more than once touched upon issues that were amplified to become broader talking points. The forum has, in that sense, frequently been ahead of the curve. For example, the themes for the 2017 summit included climate change, food security and citizen well-being and happiness. They were prescient topics, with extreme weather events and food shortages proving to be among humanity’s greatest challenges in the years since.

This year’s theme, of Shaping Future Governments, is apt, not least because of a number of critical national elections being held, and for what a postwar scenario in Gaza would look like. Today’s challenges require a trusted platform, such as the summit, for discussion, sharing of best practices and building consensus.

It is significant that this year’s guests of honour include Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who last year told the summit he would not forget the international humanitarian response to the destructive earthquake that struck his country and Syria, stressing the role of global partnerships and international solidarity. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Qatar’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, are the other guests of honour, and will be among more than 25 world leaders at Dubai’s Madinat Jumeirah.

The chief executives of Google, OpenAI and Airbus will also participate, as will several dozen other leaders in the private sector. For the public, too, this is a chance to listen to the speakers and learn from the breadth of expertise and domain knowledge of the participants. Several of these talks are recorded and accessible on social media platforms, particularly YouTube, many of which deserve more than one listen. This allows ideas to resonate far beyond the conference halls.

Multilateralism to tackle cross-border challenges are at the heart of the summit. As a vehicle to push ideas forward, the summit takes place at a time when solutions to major challenges – from Gaza to AI regulations – are sorely needed.