If you need a measure of just how bad inflation has become, the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos can provide it. Want a hotel room in this Swiss mountain town next week? Get ready to part with around $1,200 per night (or much, much more). The WEF may have tried hard to throw off the image of Davos elitism, but it doesn’t stop them slapping an eye-watering surcharge on the accommodation it offers up to delegates. Money talks, especially in these straitened times, and opportunity knocks.
On the flipside of this, the other traditional criticism levelled at Davos is that talk is cheap (even when it’s offensively expensive) and that the Forum generates plenty of words, but very few actions; yet last year’s trip up into the Alps felt unusually substantive.
Covid-19 restrictions meant fewer delegates, and as a result there were fewer hangers-on, less hoopla, and a welcome lack of nonsense. It was a leaner, nimbler, more focused affair, with a notably scaled back "circus" surrounding the main event. Even the absence of snow removed a traditional distraction. Those who came had come to engage. As a result, even though these things are hard to measure, it felt like stuff might actually be getting done.
The tide of global problems has not receded in the eight months since the WEF last convened. China is once more overwhelmed by new Covid-19 cases; the war in Ukraine, despite Russia’s preposterous offers of ceasefires, feels as entrenched as ever; the cost of living continues to soar; hard-right politics is taking root in Sweden, Israel and Italy; the US House of Representatives has descended into farce; Iran is executing protestors; Brazil has just experienced its own January 6 moment; the list goes on.
Wherever you look, dialogue is in short supply – even Prince Harry is an impasse with his family. When the spirit of compromise appears to have evaporated, the theme of this year’s meeting – Co-operation in a Fragmented World – seems Panglossian, especially when even Davos itself has gradually become more fragmented.
Comment from The National
There has long been a notion that two Davoses exist side by side. Now I’m not talking about the frivolous world of parties attended by drunken bankers and spruced up by the addition of the occasional celebrity. While these once threatened to overwhelm the main event, they have – mercifully – faded into the background in recent years. This is more a division in the way the Forum itself functions. There is the "big Davos" and its high-minded, somewhat abstract chin stroking involving presidents, finance ministers and chief executives. Then there is another, more complex, but no less important side.
Over the last few weeks, I have been overwhelmed by invitations to panels and gatherings of all stripes at Davos – often interesting and all well-intentioned. These are smaller meetings where one can learn about the latest thinking on matters such as artificial intelligence, agriculture, healthcare or mobility. They are the micro-issues that underpin the macro issues being dealt with at the other, "big Davos" – recession, climate change, food security and so on.
In a way, Davos is rather like a large container ship. Up on the bridge there are the big decisions being pondered and courses being charted. Down below deck you’ll find the many disparate parts that make up the whole, and an army of people whose objective is simply to get on with the task at hand and stay afloat. When big solutions appear so hard to find, that "below deck" world, where stuff is just getting done, has become just as important as that above.
I’ve always been something of a Davos sceptic, but this year I will head up the mountain with an open mind and renewed vigour. In a world of high stakes and low expectations, perhaps the two sides of Davos – the high-minded thinkers and the pragmatic doers – can offer a chance for both big and small steps.
For me personally, the true value of the WEF is the chance to have a meal and a drink with people I might not agree with. Even if my mind isn’t changed as a result, at least I might better understand the other point of view, and they mine. In a world starved of dialogue, the expensive conversations taking place in Davos may just be worth the bill.
Company profile
Name: Back to Games and Boardgame Space
Started: Back to Games (2015); Boardgame Space (Mark Azzam became co-founder in 2017)
Founder: Back to Games (Mr Azzam); Boardgame Space (Mr Azzam and Feras Al Bastaki)
Based: Dubai and Abu Dhabi
Industry: Back to Games (retail); Boardgame Space (wholesale and distribution)
Funding: Back to Games: self-funded by Mr Azzam with Dh1.3 million; Mr Azzam invested Dh250,000 in Boardgame Space
Growth: Back to Games: from 300 products in 2015 to 7,000 in 2019; Boardgame Space: from 34 games in 2017 to 3,500 in 2019
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
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The specs
Engine: 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 540hp at 6,500rpm
Torque: 600Nm at 2,500rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Kerb weight: 1580kg
Price: From Dh750k
On sale: via special order
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Three trading apps to try
Sharad Nair recommends three investment apps for UAE residents:
- For beginners or people who want to start investing with limited capital, Mr Nair suggests eToro. “The low fees and low minimum balance requirements make the platform more accessible,” he says. “The user interface is straightforward to understand and operate, while its social element may help ease beginners into the idea of investing money by looking to a virtual community.”
- If you’re an experienced investor, and have $10,000 or more to invest, consider Saxo Bank. “Saxo Bank offers a more comprehensive trading platform with advanced features and insight for more experienced users. It offers a more personalised approach to opening and operating an account on their platform,” he says.
- Finally, StashAway could work for those who want a hands-off approach to their investing. “It removes one of the biggest challenges for novice traders: picking the securities in their portfolio,” Mr Nair says. “A goal-based approach or view towards investing can help motivate residents who may usually shy away from investment platforms.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Company profile
Name: Fruitful Day
Founders: Marie-Christine Luijckx, Lyla Dalal AlRawi, Lindsey Fournie
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2015
Number of employees: 30
Sector: F&B
Funding so far: Dh3 million
Future funding plans: None at present
Future markets: Saudi Arabia, potentially Kuwait and other GCC countries
How does ToTok work?
The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
Rugby World Cup (all times UAE)
Third-place play-off: New Zealand v Wales, Friday, 1pm
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Under-21 European Championship Final
Germany 1 Spain 0
Weiser (40')
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
More on animal trafficking
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Secret Nation: The Hidden Armenians of Turkey
Avedis Hadjian, (IB Tauris)
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh130,000
On sale: now
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
