The World Economic Forum has confirmed plans to bring world leaders, corporate chiefs and activists back to Davos next January, two years after it last held its annual meeting at its usual base in the Swiss Alps.
The decision to proceed with an in-person gathering comes after a tumultuous period for Klaus Schwab’s group, which relies on the annual meetings for much of its income and agenda-setting reputation.
Its last event in Davos in January 2020 coincided with the moment when business and world leaders first realised that Covid-19 could become a serious challenge beyond China. Since then, the pandemic has grounded the jet set, upended economies and businesses and scrambled the supply chains that underpin the globalisation Davos champions.