AMMAN — The intricate issues and challenges facing the Middle East and North Africa’s (MENA) population of more than 400 million people, ranging from unemployment, governance challenges and energy price shocks to the regional risks of climate change, will be discussed during the 2019 World Economic Forum (WEF) on the MENA region, which will kick off on Saturday at the Dead Sea shore.

Over two days, more than 1,000 leaders of government, business, civil society, faith and academia from more than 50 countries will take part in the 17th WEF on MENA region, hosted by Jordan, to come up with solutions and recommendations on how to address the region’s pressing challenges.

“The Arab world is a region of two contrasting systems. One system features a dynamic private sector, digitally- native youth and open economies. The other has a bloated public sector and closed, controlled economies,” Mirek Dusek, deputy head of the Centre for Geopolitical and Regional Affairs and member of the WEF’s executive committee, said in a statement on the forum’s website.

“Most people in the Middle East and North Africa interact with both systems, facing a mixed reality. Wealth sits side-by-side with poverty; an exciting entrepreneurial culture struggles with leaden bureaucracy; and an insatiable appetite for the new is balanced with a reverence for tradition,” Dusek said.

The forum, which is the 10th WEF meeting to be held in Jordan and the 17th in the region, includes several sessions on various topics including managing cyber risks, widening access to early childhood education, investing in digital fluency and ICT literacy skills, creating a culture of life-long learning, shaping the future of tourism in Jordan, the fourth industrial revolution in the Arab world and environmental stewardship in the region, among others.

‘Blind spot’

A new analysis of regional risks by the WEF is expected to be released at the two-day gathering, exploring the impact on the region of the global risks of geoeconomic division and climate change and of state-specific risks of unemployment, non-diversified economies, governance challenges and terrorism, a statement from the forum said.

Drawing on data from the forum’s Global Risks Perception Survey 2018-2019, the analysis found that business leaders in the MENA region view economic and governance issues as the primary risk in the region, but may underestimate the risk of climate change.

“‘The Middle East and North Africa Risks Landscape’ comes at a pivotal time, as the fourth industrial revolution and geopolitical fractures combined with economic and security challenges within some countries are creating a complex risk environment for the region,” the statement said.

Notably, business leaders in the MENA region who responded to the survey did not rank environmental change as a risk to doing business, “a potential blind spot given the potential implications of global warming”, according to the analysis.

Instead, business leaders ranked economic and governance-related issues — “energy price shocks” and “unemployment or underemployment” — as well as “terrorism” as the top three risks to doing business in the region.

“In today’s interconnected world, risks no longer stop at borders on a map or are confined to one industry in an economy,” Dusek was quoted as saying in the statement.

“Because global risks are shaping regional landscapes and vice versa, it is important to take a ‘glocal’ approach to risk assessment. Our analysis offers a combination of global and local analysis so that stakeholders can gain a better understanding of what is necessary for risk mitigation and resiliency,” he added.

Top start-ups

The event will also witness the participation of a group from the top 100 Arab starts-ups in a special session to discuss the fourth industrial revolution.

Held in partnership with the King Abdullah II Fund for Development at the Dead Sea, the forum will be held under the theme “Building New Platforms of Cooperation”.

The session will focus on four transformational imperatives; shaping a new economic and social model for the region, environmental stewardship in the Arab world, finding common ground in a multiconceptual world and the fourth industrial revolution in the Arab world.

This year, the WEF is partnering with the Bahrain Economic Development Board to bring 100 Arab start-ups to the meeting, under an initiative that aims to further integrate entrepreneurs into a national and regional dialogue on pressing challenges.

More than 400 applicants representing 17 countries and spanning numerous sectors including finance, energy, health, environment, media and education have applied to take part in the event, according to the statement.

Representing young people, the WEF’s “Global Shapers” (aged between 20 and 30) and “Young Global Leaders” (under the age of 40), will take part in the discussions. Social entrepreneurs will also contribute to the dialogue on innovative local and regional action to address pressing problems.