Thousands of leaders, experts and senior officials from 190 countries will gather in Dubai this month to help shape the post-pandemic agenda on sustainability, health care, economic recovery and the cities of the future.
The World Government Summit will take place at the Dubai Exhibition Centre in the heart of Expo 2020 Dubai on March 29 and 30.
This year's summit will feature 15 conferences aimed at defining the future of agile governance.
They will include the first hosting of the Time 100 Gala outside of the United States, which celebrates the world’s most influential people.
The Forbes 30 Under 30 event will be in the line-up, along with the Global Crypto Forum, the Arab Meeting for Young Leaders, the Arab Government Administration Forum and the Global Metaverse Forum.
Crucial issues such as climate change and the health and energy sectors will also be explored.
More than 30 agencies central to international development will take part, including the UN, the World Health Organisation, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the Women’s Forum for Business and Society, the Atlantic Council, the International Civil Aviation Organisation, the Arab Monetary Fund and the Islamic Development Bank.
Ministers met at the Museum of the Future on Monday for a dialogue before the summit, which is the first such event since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
Although speakers at the event have yet to be announced, Mohammed Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs and chairman of the World Government Summit, revealed some details of the programme.
“The World Government Summit has become the incubator of new ideas and innovative solutions where knowledge and success stories are shared and exchanged by pioneering government officials, thought leaders and industry experts,” he said.
"WGS reflects the UAE’s commitment to global efforts to enhance the agility and resilience of governments. We stand together to forge purposeful and constructive partnerships to support the socioeconomic recovery and development process that can unlock new opportunities for people globally.
“The summit will host more than 4,000 participants of top government officials, directors and leaders with the aim to envision the future of the governments and the world, and will include more than a hundred discussion sessions.”
At the dialogue event, Abdulla bin Touq, Minister of Economy, announced the launch of the Investopia Investment Summit, an Emirati initiative supporting efforts to accelerate the growth of new economic sectors and double the size of the UAE’s economy by 2030.
Participants can expect to see a range of sessions offered during the eighth World Government Summit, with key themes for 2022 including policies that lead government progress and development, designing future health care, sustainability, accelerating global economic recovery, future technologies, building future cities, the future of education and work, and enabling social resilience.
During the curtain-raiser, Mr Al Gergawi referred to previous events that had examined in depth the challenges faced by society today.
For example, in 2018, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told leaders the world was unprepared to face a global pandemic.
A year earlier, tech billionaire Elon Musk took to the stage to predict the growing influence of online virtual worlds.
The rise of the Metaverse and its significance will be a major talking point during the 2022 gathering.
Mr Al Gergawi referred to previous discussions on the rise of cryptocurrencies and their potential to disrupt traditional banking systems.
In 2016, Jesse Powell — founder of Kraken, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges — spoke at length on the potential impact of Bitcoin and its wider adoption.
Countries around the world have since recognised the virtual currency, whose value has fluctuated wildly, peaking at $68,000 in November, 2021.
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Dubai Bling season three
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Rating: 1/5
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.
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
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Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
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