Dubai: Ten key developments have been made to this year’s World Government Summit with the main one being the organising of three forums alongside the main summit focusing on youth, happiness of societies and climate change, Mohammad Al Gergawi, Minister for Cabinet Affairs and the Future, announced on Thursday.
Al Gergawi, who is also the chairman of the Organising Committee of the World Government Summit, announced that the global event will see the Best Minister in the World Award presented again, with a focus this time on developing countries.
The UAE Government is organising World Government Summit in Dubai from February 12 to 14, under the patronage of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. The event will bring together hundreds of governments and international organisations on the leading global platform to share knowledge and experiences in the efforts to improve government work and offer better services to help serve seven billion people around the world, Al Gergawi said.
During a session aimed to reveal some of the details of the 2017 summit, the minister said this year’s edition will see a number of positive changes that are in line with its unique position as an international organisation that works throughout the year to produce knowledge for future governments.
“The summit has become a movement around the world. It started locally and now it has become international. Through it, the vision for the future will turn into real ideas,” he said.
He mentioned the participation of seven world and international organisations some of which include the International Monetary Fund, the United Nations, Unesco, World Bank, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and World Economic Forum.
“This the first time all these organisations are gathering in the UAE to shape the future of the world and discuss the services, challenges and answer the questions of tomorrow today,” he said.
More than 150 countries will be taking part, he added.
The summit will host speakers from leading government and private entities and international organisations who will share their experiences.
“The summit will be launching global reports and indices in partnership with Harvard, Oxford and Mackenzie. Different organisations will discuss the future of governments and digital transactions, innovation in governments and how to achieve the sustainable development goals,” he said.
The agenda and topics will look at the future of health care, education, cities, humanitarian work, innovation and science, energy, transportation and other key sectors.
He said a Japanese delegation will be the guest of honour this year who will be sharing their experiences in government work. Three forums
Uhoud Khalfan Al Roumi, Minister of State for Happiness and vice-chairman of the Organising Committee of the World Government Summit, said the Global Dialogue for Happiness, to be held a day before the summit, will gather happiness experts and ministers including scientists to discuss how happiness can be achieved in societies. This forum will also include workshops.
“Happiness is a common denominator between societies, and through the summit and forum, we will look at various practical examples of happy societies and discuss what governments around the world can do to achieve happier societies,” she said, adding that studies will be presented to explain the science of happiness.
Among pillar of the forum is government policies and happiness, she said, including the link between smart services and satisfaction of people.
On his part, Dr Thani Ahmad Al Zeyoudi, Minster of Environment and Climate Change, said the Climate Change And Food Security Forum will run for two and a half days and will bring CEOs, government officials and organisations together to share their knowledge and experiences.
“The forum will include discussions on some of the most pressing issues in the world such as the issue of 80 million migrants as a result of climate change and how this number can increase to 200 million if there continues to be a lack of response from governments.”
The Arab Youth Forum will be held throughout the three days of the summit, Shamma Suhail Faris Al Mazroui, Minister of State for Youth, said. The future is the youth and the forum will launch three dialogue sessions to talk about their aspirations and challenges which can help generate policies and innovative ideas.
“The last edition of the summit saw the announcement and appointment of the youngest minister of youth in the world, reflecting the UAE’s interest in its youth and the role they can play in building nations and societies. The 2017 summit will allocate a number of events as part of the Arab Youth Forum, which will discuss their futuristic role. It will host young pioneers and influencers from around the world and will also engage them in a constructive dialogue with top officials and decision makers,” she said.
