World leaders gathering in the Swiss Alpine town of Davos for the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) will hear that global climate change is the most serious enduring risk facing the world today, while large-scale involuntary migration is the most immediate.
Business leaders among the 2,500 attendees at the meeting, which starts on Wednesday, rate unemployment and energy prices as the biggest threats to economic and corporate health. Middle East executives also worry about the effects of terrorist attacks and interstate conflict.
These are the main findings of the WEF’s 2016 Global Risks Report, determined by surveying 750 of its leading thinkers, strategists and consultants.
The WEF report said: "After its presence in the top five most-impactful risks for the past three years, the failure of climate change mitigation and adaptation has risen to the top, and is perceived in 2016 as the most impactful risk for the years to come, ahead of weapons of mass destruction, ranking second, and water crises, ranking third. Large-scale involuntary migration was also rated among the top five for impact, as was severe energy price shock.
“The risk rated most likely was large-scale involuntary migration, with last year’s top scorer – interstate conflict with regional consequences – giving way to the environmental risks of extreme weather events and the failure of climate change mitigation and adaptation, and followed by major natural catastrophes,” it added.
The report was compiled before the onset of the global financial downturn this year. “It marks a forceful departure from past findings, as the risks about which we have been warning over the past decade are starting to manifest themselves in new, sometimes unexpected ways and harm people, institutions and economies,” the WEF said.
Some attendees believe financial and economic concerns will be the main preoccupation at Davos. Nouriel Roubini, a professor of economics at New York University's Stern School of Business, said in a pre-Davos article in Time magazine that the world was entering a "new abnormal" phase regarding growth, economic policy, inflation, key asset prices and financial markets".
The official theme of the 46th Davos meeting is “mastering the fourth industrial revolution”, which is the “fusion of technologies across the physical, digital and biological worlds”, said Klaus Schwab, the founder and executive chairman of the WEF.
More than 40 heads of state and government will attend the meeting, more than ever before, including a big delegation from the United States led by the vice president Joe Biden and secretary of state John Kerry.
Middle East regional security issues will be an important focus of the meeting, with foreign ministers expected from Saudi Arabia and Iran to take part in separate meetings regarding the recent outbreak of heightened tensions between them in Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
A big Saudi delegation, including the governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency Fahad Abdullah Al Mubarak, will tell WEF of the country’s ambitions for a national transformation plan in light of the low oil prices.
The UAE delegation includes Sultan Al Mansouri, the minister of economy; Mohammed Al Gergawi, the cabinet affairs minister; Essa Kazim, the governor and chairman of the Dubai International Financial Centre; and Mohammed Al Shaibani, the chief executive of the Investment Corporation of Dubai.
Local businessmen in attendance include Mohamed Alabbar, the chairman of Emaar, and Abdulaziz Al Ghurair, the chief executive of Mashreq Bank and head of the UAE Banks Federation.
Artists and cultural personalities expected to attend include the American Oscar-nominated actor Leonardo DiCaprio, the Chinese actress Yao Chen and the rock musicians Bono and Peter Gabriel.
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Fight card
1. Bantamweight: Victor Nunes (BRA) v Siyovush Gulmamadov (TJK)
2. Featherweight: Hussein Salim (IRQ) v Shakhriyor Juraev (UZB)
3. Catchweight 80kg: Rashed Dawood (UAE) v Khamza Yamadaev (RUS)
4. Lightweight: Ho Taek-oh (KOR) v Ronald Girones (CUB)
5. Lightweight: Arthur Zaynukov (RUS) v Damien Lapilus (FRA)
6. Bantamweight: Vinicius de Oliveira (BRA) v Furkatbek Yokubov (RUS)
7. Featherweight: Movlid Khaybulaev (RUS) v Zaka Fatullazade (AZE)
8. Flyweight: Shannon Ross (TUR) v Donovon Freelow (USA)
9. Lightweight: Mohammad Yahya (UAE) v Dan Collins (GBR)
10. Catchweight 73kg: Islam Mamedov (RUS) v Martun Mezhulmyan (ARM)
11. Bantamweight World title: Jaures Dea (CAM) v Xavier Alaoui (MAR)
12. Flyweight World title: Manon Fiorot (FRA) v Gabriela Campo (ARG)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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Other promotions
- Deliveroo will team up with Pineapple Express to offer customers near JLT a special treat: free banana caramel dessert with all orders on January 26
- Jones the Grocer will have their limited edition Australia Day menu available until the end of the month (January 31)
- Australian Vet in Abu Dhabi (with locations in Khalifa City A and Reem Island) will have a 15 per cent off all store items (excluding medications)
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Iraq negotiating over Iran sanctions impact
- US sanctions on Iran’s energy industry and exports took effect on Monday, November 5.
- Washington issued formal waivers to eight buyers of Iranian oil, allowing them to continue limited imports. Iraq did not receive a waiver.
- Iraq’s government is cooperating with the US to contain Iranian influence in the country, and increased Iraqi oil production is helping to make up for Iranian crude that sanctions are blocking from markets, US officials say.
- Iraq, the second-biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, pumped last month at a record 4.78 million barrels a day, former Oil Minister Jabbar Al-Luaibi said on Oct. 20. Iraq exported 3.83 million barrels a day last month, according to tanker tracking and data from port agents.
- Iraq has been working to restore production at its northern Kirkuk oil field. Kirkuk could add 200,000 barrels a day of oil to Iraq’s total output, Hook said.
- The country stopped trucking Kirkuk oil to Iran about three weeks ago, in line with U.S. sanctions, according to four people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because they aren’t allowed to speak to media.
- Oil exports from Iran, OPEC’s third-largest supplier, have slumped since President Donald Trump announced in May that he’d reimpose sanctions. Iran shipped about 1.76 million barrels a day in October out of 3.42 million in total production, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
- Benchmark Brent crude fell 47 cents to $72.70 a barrel in London trading at 7:26 a.m. local time. U.S. West Texas Intermediate was 25 cents lower at $62.85 a barrel in New York. WTI held near the lowest level in seven months as concerns of a tightening market eased after the U.S. granted its waivers to buyers of Iranian crude.
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The Orwell Prize for Political Writing
Twelve books were longlisted for The Orwell Prize for Political Writing. The non-fiction works cover various themes from education, gender bias, and the environment to surveillance and political power. Some of the books that made it to the non-fiction longlist include:
- Appeasing Hitler: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to War by Tim Bouverie
- Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me by Kate Clanchy
- Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez
- Follow Me, Akhi: The Online World of British Muslims by Hussein Kesvani
- Guest House for Young Widows: Among the Women of ISIS by Azadeh Moaveni
Top tips
Create and maintain a strong bond between yourself and your child, through sensitivity, responsiveness, touch, talk and play. “The bond you have with your kids is the blueprint for the relationships they will have later on in life,” says Dr Sarah Rasmi, a psychologist.
Set a good example. Practise what you preach, so if you want to raise kind children, they need to see you being kind and hear you explaining to them what kindness is. So, “narrate your behaviour”.
Praise the positive rather than focusing on the negative. Catch them when they’re being good and acknowledge it.
Show empathy towards your child’s needs as well as your own. Take care of yourself so that you can be calm, loving and respectful, rather than angry and frustrated.
Be open to communication, goal-setting and problem-solving, says Dr Thoraiya Kanafani. “It is important to recognise that there is a fine line between positive parenting and becoming parents who overanalyse their children and provide more emotional context than what is in the child’s emotional development to understand.”
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
How to improve Arabic reading in early years
One 45-minute class per week in Standard Arabic is not sufficient
The goal should be for grade 1 and 2 students to become fluent readers
Subjects like technology, social studies, science can be taught in later grades
Grade 1 curricula should include oral instruction in Standard Arabic
First graders must regularly practice individual letters and combinations
Time should be slotted in class to read longer passages in early grades
Improve the appearance of textbooks
Revision of curriculum should be undertaken as per research findings
Conjugations of most common verb forms should be taught
Systematic learning of Standard Arabic grammar
