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Male Speaker: His Majesty, King Abdullah II of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,
Professor Klaus Schwab. [Applause]
Klaus Schwab: Your Majesty, King Abdullah II of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan;
Your Majesty, Queen Rania Al Abdullah; Your Majesty, King Juan Carlos I of Spain;
members of the Royal Family and Royal Highnesses,
and in this respect, I would like to express on behalf of the participants
our sympathy and condolences to our Saudi friends here
mourning the death of His Royal Highness Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud;
Your Excellency Asif Ali Zardari, president of Pakistan;
Your Excellency Sheikh Hamad Bin Jazim Bin Jabar Altani, prime minister
and minister of foreign affairs of Qatar; Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen.
Before I start, I would also like to welcome a very special guest here.
It is the prime minister of the Transitional Committee of Libya
of the National Transition Committee, Dr. Mahmoud Jibril.
Please join me to celebrate the rebirth of Libya. [Applause]
Klaus Schwab: It is a very special privilege to be here at the Dead Sea under
the leadership of His Majesty King Abdullah II,
King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
Your Majesty, you took the initiative to offer us hospitality in 2003, and it's the
sixth time that we enjoy this great place,
your hospitality, and your leadership here at this very special place.
This meeting is particularly timely because it focuses on economic growth
and job creation in the Arab world.
With over 1,000 participants from more
than 50 countries, this gathering also provides a significant opportunity to look
at the origins and possible outcomes of what is generally called the Arab Spring.
But we are here not only as observers.
We are here being part really of history.
Let's make no mistake in looking at the Arab Spring solely as a special regional
event or process. What is happening in this region is part
of a great global transformation affecting all countries and all citizens.
Over the past three years, the world has been engulfed by political, economic,
and particularly financial crisis management,
and we have lost sight of the fundamental
transformation that the world is undergoing, and where conventional modes
of decision-making have become outdated. What we clearly need today are new models
of global, regional, national,
and business decision-making which truly reflect such context for decision-making
has been altered in unprecedented ways. Before His Majesty officially opens this
meeting, let me just outline the new models which are musts if we are to
successfully push beyond the current
impasse in addressing our critical challenges. And those new models have been the
drivers of our program for the next 48 hours. First, a new model is needed to account
for the fundamental power shifts that have
taken place not only in the geopolitical and geoeconomic field but also by the need
to integrate new non-state actors who want
to have their say and who have the current capability to do so.
Power has become much more distributed and diffused.
Thus, we need new models where governance processes on all levels integrate those
newcomers in the most collaborative way. In the old world, it has been hard power,
hierarchical power which was decisive.
Then came the face of soft power. But today, what we need is a truly
collaborative power. We have to integrate, empower newcomers
for what I would call our governance processes on all levels.
The capability to exercise collaborative power will determine the future on
business, national, regional, and global levels. A second new model is needed which
acknowledges that despite globalization, we are living together in a multicultural,
multiethnic, and multireligious world. Prevailing values have to increasingly
accommodate diversity with substantial challenges for our national and our
individual identities. We will only make lasting progress by
recognizing that we may be different but
we are interdependent. Thus, despite differences, we have to
cultivate a much greater feeling of togetherness. A third model is needed to seriously
address the social impact of globalization and the new wave of technological innovation.
Growing inequities within and between countries and rising unemployment are not
any more sustainable and are triggering, as we see, social protests witnessed now
all over the world. We must rethink our traditional notions
of economic development. We have to find new ways.
We have to embrace a much more holistic, inclusive, and sustainable approach to
economic development based on the stakeholder and not on the shareholder principle.
We need a fourth new model for job creation. The global economy now is growing more slowly.
Productivity is making still substantial progress, and unemployment is skyrocketing.
We also know that hundreds of millions of people will enter the job market in the
next decade. In addition to the productivity increases
driven by greater resource efficiency, the industry model is changing, moving upscale
where fewer people can produce much more value. The key to mitigate a catastrophic
situation particularly in this region is to provide young people with the
capability to create their own jobs. We have to move from the traditional
concept of employment much more to the concept of micro-entrepreneurship.
This will require fundamental changes in educational systems, nurturing a societal
spirit of entrepreneurial risk-taking, allowing true gender equality to integrate
the other half of hidden talents, and making innovation and the support of
innovation a key imperative in public and private life.
The success of any national or business model for competitiveness in the future
will be less based on capital and much more on talents.
We could say that the world is moving from capitalism to talentism.
Ladies and gentlemen, I have outlined only some of the new models which form part of
this program and of the great transformation to illustrate that we are
at a historic inflection point not only in this region but globally.
To respond to the expectations of the young generation, we have to provide them
with the hope and confidence that they will not have to pay for the mistakes
and errors of the present generation. This generation is impatient
and impassionate but represents a great positive force for change.
Emerging from this meeting and such our hope, we have to demonstrate some concrete
commitments which force the job creation and economic development to respond to
urgent immediate needs. However, we must also show true leadership
in shaping the new models which offer long-term perspectives to the next generation.
This is the reason why we place great emphasis on engaging what we call Young
Global Leaders, Global Changemakers, and Global Shapers into this special meeting.
And a welcome the young generation particularly here in the audience.
We have to embrace and make sure the next
generation with clear principles of freedom, innovation, collaboration, and integrity.
There is a tipping point where velocity, interconnectivity, and complexity become
so pervasive that the whole system collapses regardless of whether certain
elements at the surface are addressed. Here, Jordan, here in your country,
Your Majesty, it is the right place at the right time in the right context where we
must individually and collectively have the foresight, the commitment,
and collaborative power to shape the new models needed to safeguard our global
future and to respond to the expectations and hopes of the hundreds of millions of
people who presently feel left out but who have the great potential to contribute to
global welfare and global justice. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome His
Majesty King Abdullah II to officially open this meeting.
[Applause] H.M. King Abdullah II Ibn Al Hussein:
Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim. Your Majesty, ladies and gentlemen,
before we start this special meeting, as has done with Professor Schwab, I'd like to express
my sincerest condolences to my brother, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques over
the loss of Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz of Saudi Arabia.
Jordan mourns the passing of such an Arab statesman and leader, a champion of the
Arab and Muslim cause, and may I ask all of you to join me for a moment of silence.
H.M. King Abdullah II Ibn Al Hussein: May his soul rest in peace.
Professor Schwab, distinguished guests, thank you, and thank you all for being here.
It is a vital time for this special meeting on economic growth and job
creation in the Arab World. And I want to extend a warm welcome to our
friends from many continents who join us today. Professor Schwab, let me thank you
personally for your inspired work and loyal friendship to the people of this region.
Long before social media, the World Economic Forum was hosting a global
conversation, where good minds meet, smart solutions take root.
That is just what I hope will be achieved here, by all of you.
My friends, our region stands today at the gates to the future.
First is the gate of dignity, a passage to the respect our people deserve
and their right, without exception, to the broad horizons enjoyed by others around
the world. Aspiring men and women, young people,
pragmatic dreamers gathered at this gate in the Arab Spring.
Second is the gate of opportunity, an economic opening for millions more of our
people - young, old, urban, rural Badia. To widen this gate, entrepreneurs
and innovators, educators and policymakers are desperately needed not only to free people
from today's economic hardships but to clear a path to the 85-million new jobs
that the region needs soon. The third gate is the gate of democracy,
not just a political structure but a way of life.
An entry to real reform where people can come together as citizens
and stakeholders, assembling in political parties, formulating platforms, building consensus.
There is no one path forward from this gate. Solutions must and will be homegrown in
each of our countries. The fourth gate is the gate of peace
and justice, opening the way out of regional crisis, especially at the heart of the
region, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Short-sighted leaders may think they can
shut this gate. But the future for the Middle East
and beyond is with the normalcy of peace, a two-state solution with a sovereign,
viable, and independent Palestine on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its
capital, in accordance with U.N. resolutions, resolving all final status issues;
security and acceptance for Israel; and a new era of peace and cooperation from the
Atlantic to the Indian Ocean. The four gates of the Arab future are not alternatives.
We must pass through them all. Dignity, opportunity, democracy,
peace, and justice are ultimately inseparable. To cement progress anywhere, we will need
progress everywhere. Your meetings here focus on an area of
urgent need: economic growth and jobs. It is hard to find a more central concern
for our people, especially our young people, the majority of our population.
Today, the Middle East has the highest youth unemployment rate of any region in
the world. Pockets of poverty make the distresses
harder, and families everywhere have felt the impact from global crises in food,
energy, and even finance. This year's events have opened the way to
positive change but in many places also created painful economic dislocations.
Strategies are urgently needed and they must take place across the board,
in economic life, in politics and policies, in social life and cultural values.
Steve Jobs helped prove that people who think different can change the world.
He will be sorely missed. But his inspiration will live on.
And I believe there are millions of men and women with minds that are no less
creative and daring right here in the Arab World.
They are ready for the opportunity to act. And they can, we all can, change our world.
And when it comes to getting our people employed, three groups have special roles.
One is the private sector, which has a strong interest in getting more people off
the unemployment rolls. A secure middle class, optimistic about
the future, will anchor our strategic region better than any resource.
To get there, we need innovative approaches in all areas.
In Jordan, for example, we've seen huge growth in ICT, pioneered by visionaries
who saw the possibilities of a new regional market and supported by national
investments in infrastructure and education. There is also great potential in other
industries that our region needs, such as water and alternative energy, which can,
in turn, open new global markets. Many other possibilities are ripe for
initiative, and I hope you will discover some here.
The second major player in job growth is government. And let's be clear: political reform
is economic reform. For businesses to invest and expand with
confidence, they need a predictable, level playing field;
transparency and accountability; the rule of law, and a strong,
stable foundation of inclusive political life. These are key fundamental elements of
Jordan's reform efforts. And for us, the Arab Spring has been an
opportunity to move our nation's interests forward. We seek a consensual and evolutionary
path, engaging citizens at all levels. We have set milestones and we are keeping
to them. New constitutional amendments protect
civil rights and freedoms, establish an independent Constitutional Court,
and provide for an independent Elections Commission.
Wide-ranging legislation will implement these and other provisions.
And we are anticipating new municipal and parliamentary elections in the near future.
The third key group in regional job creation, and this, of course, is our
people themselves. Building our region's future is
a responsibility that belongs to all. This is true in political life and it
is true for our economic future as well. All the jobs that our region needs will
not be wished into being. But we can help opportunity grow by what
we do, by strong and growing productivity, new investments and industries,
innovation and entrepreneurial spirit. And for this, we need everyone.
Employees who do their job with
dedication and professionalism, managers who act ethically and competently,
CEOs who lead boldly and responsibly, civil society volunteers and caring young people
who better our communities and help each other reach their potential.
My friends, we've all seen the soaring archways of classic Islamic architecture.
Their design depends on many individual stones, using the strength of each,
working in perfect harmony, to create the whole. It cannot stand, it cannot last without
them all. Today, in our political and economic
life, each of us is needed. If we work together, if we lend our full
strength to the job, I believe we can make a future worthy of our great people.
My best wishes to you all for your work today and in the days ahead.
Thank you very much. [Applause]