Foreign minister to attend Davos meeting Tuesday

Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali left Dhaka for Davos, Switzerland on Sunday night to attend the 48th World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting. The four-day annual meeting of the WEF begins on Tuesday in Davos under the theme 'Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World,' said an official. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina attended the 47th annual meeting last year and she was invited this time too but sent the foreign minister to represent Bangladesh, the official told UNB. The foreign minister will return home on Friday. Unprecedented participation expected from global leaders including 70 heads of state or government and 38 heads of major international organizations as well as the largest proportion of women leaders ever. The meeting will focus on reinvigorating international collaboration as a way of solving shared challenges in an era increasingly defined by societies under strain and competition between nations. Founder and Executive Chairman, World Economic Forum Prof Klaus Schwab said the world has become fractured by increasing competition between nations and deep divides within societies. "Yet the sheer scale of the challenges our world faces makes concerted, collaborative and integrated action more essential than ever. Our Annual Meeting aims to overcome these fault lines by reasserting shared interests among nations and securing multi-stakeholder commitment to renewing social contracts through inclusive growth," said the founder. This year's opening address will be delivered by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, organizers said.