Staff Reporter, Gulf Today

Mohammad Bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs and Chairman of the World Government Summit Organisation, stated that the UAE, under the wise leadership of President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has reinforced its global status in ushering a new era of government work where government leaders make critical decisions towards designing a better future for humanity.

He added that the UAE government under the leadership of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, is committed to global collaboration in enhancing governments’ readiness to the future and predicting future trends over the next decade.

This came as the World Government Summit Organisation launched a new report titled “Critical Decision Points Facing Government Leaders in a Transforming World”, in collaboration with the National Transformations Institute at Kearney Middle East.

The report was launched during the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, which is held under the theme “History at a Turning Point: Government Policies and Business Strategies”, with the participation of more than 2,000 government leaders, officials, decision-makers, thought leaders, scientists, private sector leaders and prominent academics.

Al Gergawi further said that the post-COVID-19 world has changed dramatically and that it heralded a new era of accelerated changes that require adopting a whole-of-government approach, promoting strategic forward-thinking, and designing comprehensive policies that keep pace with global changes.

He added that the report reflects the role of the World Government Summit Organisation in inspiring future governments and enhancing their capabilities to address future challenges through anticipating critical decision points and taking actions on them early in their evolution, which enables government leaders to create strategic advantage, strengthen resilience and accelerate progress over the coming years.

he report explored radical changes, such as climate change, cyber risks and rising public debt, that will require governments to take a new approach to addressing challenges that sees them develop innovative solutions to enhance their resilience and agility, four dimensions, namely; strategic shocks, widening divides, system disruptions, as well as policy accelerators.

The report also reviews that need to be considered to make critical decisions, prepare for emergencies, anticipate threats, combat corruption, and foresee the future of technologies to support public policymakers in making decisions around challenges like cybercrime and governance of the Metaverse.

For his part, Rodolphe Le Maire, Partner and Director of the Institute for National Transitions at Kearney Middle East, said, “In periods of extreme volatility and change, decisions made - or not made - have far-reaching repercussions. Leaders can achieve the desired results by initiating proactive decisions in a timely manner. Making early decisions and actions can contribute to avoiding crises or building the flexibility to address them. In many other cases, making critical decisions allows the harnessing of opportunities to achieve strategic advantages.”

The report covers existing challenges faced by policymakers globally, including how to contain rising inflation without impeding increased employment growth. The report notes that the monetary and fiscal tightening required to slow inflation may hinder economic growth, already blunted by the pandemic. Failure to tackle inflation may undermine market expectations, which will cause high risks of stagflation, along with a sharp rise in commodity prices, the report outlines.

The report adds that an integrated approach to monetary and fiscal policy is “essential to balance price stability with economic growth, while monetary tightening will be critical to entrenching demand”. Policymakers will need to take special steps to ease supply constraints and help disrupted economic sectors. These measures will be country specific, where the economic context varies depending on GDP growth, core inflation rates, national financial safety margins and debt burdens.

In terms of energy challenges, the report predicts that the consumption of major energy resources will rise globally by 50% by 2050, adding that the current context “shows the complexity and risks of the current global energy system”.

The report notes that “the state of energy uncertainty requires urgent action to achieve energy security in the short term, with flexibility also in the long term.”

It outlines: “In addition to diversifying and balancing international trade relations, countries can enhance energy resilience through partnerships that integrate energy infrastructure, technology exchange and acceleration of investment in strategic industries. The turbulent environment of energy markets requires an energy security approach that ensures resilience to strategic shocks.”

The report indicates that food insecurity has risen, stating that there are several factors that support this trend. Exporting of wheat, barley and corn, are essential, but conflicts may lead to the suspension of production and shipments and the disruption of the Spring sowing season, which in turn will lead to a long-term deficit.