Annual Report

2004/2005

Shaping the global, regional

and industry agendas
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The World Economic Forum is The World Economic Forum Disaster

Resource Network (DRN) worked
tirelessly to coordinate aid following
the December 2004 South East
Asia tsunami.

an independent international
organization committed to
improving the state of the world Contents
The Executive Chairman’s Statement 2
Annual Meeting 2005 6

by engaging leaders in The regional agenda

Industry Partnerships
Strategic Insight
10
16
17
Partnership and Governance 19

partnerships to shape global, Our members and partners

Our communities and constituencies
21
23

www.weforum.org
Our organization 26
The Forum community 29

regional and industry agendas. Sharing knowledge

Our financial results
32
34
Our mission and values 36

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The Executive Chairman’s Statement
Exercise self-
responsibility,
global responsibility and
responsibility to the next
generation. Then we will
improve the state of
the world.
Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive
Chairman of the World Economic Forum
The Executive Chairman with fellow participants at the Asia Roundtable in Singapore. From left: Kim Hyun-Chong,
Minister of Trade of the Republic of Korea; Klaus Schwab; Peter Mandelson, EU Trade Commissioner; and
Lim Hng-Kiang, Minister for Trade and Industry of Singapore.
The challenges the world
faces today are increasingly
complex. They cross
borders, industry sectors
and communities. Traditional
solutions, however well-
meaning or well-managed,
do not work.
To meet today’s global challenges needs
fresh thinking, new approaches and
novel partnerships. In 2004/2005, such
qualities drove all World Economic
Forum activity, both externally and
inside our organization.
2 3
Page 2
During the year, we focused in
particular on:
• Continued moves to build
strong partnerships
• Increased efforts to help drive the
global industry agenda
• Greater collaboration with members in
planning and executing summit activity
• Renewed focus on young and fresh
unconventional thinking
• Launch of a Global Leadership
initiative, to develop outstanding
individuals
In 2004/2005, our conviction that
multistakeholder partnerships are
essential for global prosperity inspired
the redrafting of our mission. This
linked our avowed commitment to
‘improving the state of the world’ with
the explicit assertion that it would be
achieved ‘by engaging leaders in
partnerships to shape global, regional
and industry agendas’.
The launch of our Industry Partnerships
Programme showed this collaborative
drive in action. It benefits industry by
bringing together leading companies in
key sectors within a structured
framework and providing peer learning
and input from the world’s leading
experts. Having attracted 51 companies
in its first nine months, the Programme’s
early success was one of the year’s
most outstanding highlights. We are
confident it will help establish the Forum
as an even more essential and sustained
partner to industry.
Our summits have always sought to
anticipate the needs of member
organizations and to reflect key issues
and, in doing so, to drive the global
agenda. In 2004/2005, we took this
commitment even further. In a new
move, the agendas of the Annual
Meeting and the Africa Economic
Summit were structured to give targeted
support to the UK as it chaired the G-8
group of industrialized nations and took
over the presidency of the EU in the
second half of 2005. The programme
outline was drawn up in close
collaboration with senior UK ministers,
with Prime Minister Tony Blair and
Chancellor Gordon Brown participating
in the Annual Meeting.
A ‘town hall’ at the Annual Meeting also
demonstrated our receptiveness to
members’ needs, by involving them in
prioritizing the six core challenges which
they wished to focus on and develop
action agendas around, both while they
were in Davos and beyond. The
participants opted for fighting poverty
and addressing equitable globalization,
climate change, education, the Middle
East initiatives and global governance.
Fresh thinking comes most easily to
younger people, who are less
trammelled by convention. In
2004/2005, I created the Forum of
Young Global Leaders, a sister
foundation to the World Economic
Forum. It will provide a framework for
the actions and interactions of 1,111
emerging leaders aged between 25 and
40. Building on our previous Global
Leaders for Tomorrow Initiative, but
incorporating a broader selection
procedure, greater critical mass, a wider
selection background, and clearer
responsibilities, this programme will
engage a fresh generation of
outstanding young people in improving
the state of the world and will enable us
to learn from today’s talent and build
bonds with tomorrow’s world leaders.
We also launched an ambitious
www.weforum.org
development initiative for young
professionals joining the Forum. The
new three-year Global Leadership
Programme attracted 1,700 largely
outstanding applications for 30 places.
Targeted at the very best, it offers
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The Executive Chairman’s Statement

We will be
remembered for
three things right now. The
Internet, the war against
terror, and what we did or
didn’t do about this glorious
continent of Africa and its
travails. I think we can be the
generation that ends
extreme poverty.
Bono,
Musician, DATA (Debt, AIDS and Trade in Africa), UK
Shoulder-to-shoulder at the Annual Meeting 2005: former US President Bill Clinton,
Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, South African President Thabo Mbeki, UK Prime Minister
Tony Blair, musician Bono and Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo.

candidates the opportunity to develop their
careers and leadership capability by
working within the Forum while also
working towards a Master’s in Global
Leadership, which has been developed in
partnership with some of the world’s finest
universities. The organization, and its
mission, will gain from the influx of their new
ideas, drive and vision.
The continuing demand for, and relevance
of, the Forum and its mission was reflected
in our strong financial performance. We
again grew by around 13% as income from
our different activities and initiatives
remained high. Of particular note was the
increasing number of members who
indicated their commitment to the Forum
by becoming strategic partners. The sum of
Sfr.1,253,336 that we were able to add to
our reserves was also due to our excellent
performance in achieving cost efficiencies.
The legal status of the Forum as a
There were several Management Board
changes during the year. José Maria
Figueres, CEO, resigned in October; in
April, Michel Ogrizek, MD, Head of
Communications, left to become Vice-
Chairman of a leading communications
company in New York; and, in June,
Frédéric Sicre left to become Executive
Director of a well-established Dubai asset
management firm. Both Michel and
Frédéric remain my special advisers.
There were two new additions to the
Managing Board: Thomas Glanzmann,
Acting Managing Director and Senior
Adviser to myself, joined in August 2004;
and Peter Torreele, Managing Director,
Community Development and Marketing,
was appointed to the Managing Board
in November.
The Foundation is a very complex
organization, serving numerous
constituents while undertaking many
activities. This means that complementary
In 2005/2006 we will reshape the Forum to
further meet the needs of members.
Particularly significant will be the launch of
two international offices, in Beijing and New
York. The Beijing office will focus on a new
community for the Forum: ‘Global Growth
Companies’. These are companies that do
not meet the size criteria of our core
membership but which are likely to be
among the global players of tomorrow; for
example, high tech or niche companies,
family businesses or emerging
multinationals in the new markets. The
office in the global corporate hub of New
York, meanwhile, will enable us to build
stronger relationships with industry and will
mean we can offer more local support to
the one-third of our members who are from
North America.
Overall, its was a highly rewarding and
exciting year. The richest source of
satisfaction was the high degree of
engagement of our members and partners,
With the implementation of major strategic
stepping stones in hand, the outlook for
2005/2006 is very promising. Having been
a major catalyst for advancing social issues
during the last year, our focus over the next
year will be more industry-, business- and
leadership-related. We will also bear in
mind that the general mood so far during
2005/2006 has been optimistic. Inevitably,
however, recent events such as the terrorist
attacks in London will make for a more
challenging international environment over
the coming months. This, in turn, will make
the Forum’s work even more essential.
Professor Klaus Schwab
Founder and Executive Chairman

foundation under the supervision of the
Swiss Federal Government, similar to the
International Red Cross, ensures that, in
perpetuity, our accumulated reserves are
dedicated to pursuing our mission.
skills and experience at the top are
essential. One of my key tasks in the year
ahead will be the further development of a
highly committed and talented Managing
Board.
www.weforum.org
along with the commitment and hard work
of all those collaborating on Forum
activities. Our people are the Forum’s
driving force, and I would like to extend to
them my warmest thanks.

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Participants at work in Davos.
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9/1/05 10:41 AM Page 6
It’s completely
against our
interests in Europe,
and I would say, also
against the American
interests and against
the interests of the
global community
not to have the European Union and
the United States work together.
José Manuel Barroso,
President of the European Commission, Brussels
The Annual Meeting 2005 in Davos drew
together 2,250 leaders from business,
politics, academia, non-governmental
organizations, the media, religion and civil
society. It incorporated lively workshops,
panel discussions and plenary sessions
and engaged participants under the theme:
‘Taking Responsibility for Tough Choices’.
In line with the Forum’s determination to
be a member-driven organization, all the
participants kicked off the Annual
Meeting by setting the agenda
collectively during the first-ever ‘town
hall’. From a list of 12 topical issues, they
voted to prioritize six: poverty, equitable
globalization, climate change, education,
the Middle East and global governance.
Following the town hall, participants
dedicated the rest of the Annual Meeting
to creating an action agenda around
each priority.
The theme
of this year’s
Annual Meeting
is ‘Taking
Responsibility for
Tough Choices’ – to
me that’s all about
leadership.
N.R. Narayana Murthy, Chairman of the
Board and Chief Mentor of Infosys Technologies, India
The event was a catalyst towards Africa’s
subsequent rise to the top of the global
agenda. It began with two high-profile
sessions that highlighted the state of the
continent. Public figures and socially-
engaged celebrities attending these
sessions included UK Prime Minister Tony
Blair and Chancellor of the Exchequer
Gordon Brown, who both made pivotal
contributions to key discussions on poverty
alleviation and climate change. They were
joined by rock star Bono, former US
President Bill Clinton, Microsoft Chairman
Bill Gates, South African President Thabo
Mbeki and Tanzanian President Benjamin
Mkapa – among others.
The Annual Meeting involved a wide range
of cultural leaders from the arts, including
Nobel Prize-winning US academic Elie
Wiesel, US musician Lionel Richie, South
African author Nadine Gordimer and British
What did the
Annual Meeting 2005 deliver?
The single
greatest
contribution the
developed world can
make to poverty
alleviation is to
dissolve or at least
begin to break down
trade barriers. Trade access is worth far
more to underdeveloped countries
than development assistance.
John Howard, Prime Minister of Australia
musician Peter Gabriel, along with well-
known figures from the world of film,
including Angelina Jolie, Richard Gere,
Sharon Stone and Carole Bouquet. Their
presence – as concerned global citizens
rather than celebrities – helped draw the
attention of a broader audience to issues
such as AIDS, climate change, poverty
alleviation and tsunami relief efforts.
The energy generated on day one of the
Annual Meeting continues to reverberate
across Africa and around the world. During
the summer – as the Live 8 series of
international concerts kept momentum
strong – this energy ensured that Africa,
debt relief, trade and global poverty held
centre stage at the G-8 meeting in
Gleneagles and beyond.
The spirit of generosity and determination
that defined the debate on Africa also
Annual Meeting 2005
At the Annual Meeting 2005,
2,250 leaders from all walks of life, and from
many different nations, came together to
address the world’s major challenges. They
achieved some significant goals.
The tsunami
relief effort
showed that
we are all
interconnected; we
stick together when
it counts.
Samuel Schmid, President of the Swiss
Confederation and Federal Councillor of Defence
expressed itself in the debate over the bribery. Agreeing to a zero tolerance
role of corporations in disaster relief. With policy, 62 corporate leaders voiced their
news from South East Asia still support for the Principles of Countering
dominated by the tsunami disaster, Bribery, published by the Forum’s
participants stressed that private Partnering Against Corruption Initiative.
business has a vital role to play in helping
stricken communities. Davos also helped direct global attention to
the poor international response to the UN’s
Another outcome of the Annual Meeting Millennium Declaration. The Forum’s Global
was a promise from the European Governance Initiative monitors the efforts of
Commission (EC) to reduce the number governments, the private sector, civil
of goals in its Lisbon Strategy. Signed in society and international organizations
2000, the strategy aims to make Europe towards achieving the goals of the
‘the most competitive and knowledge- Declaration. Among other objectives, this
driven economy by 2010’. EC President document aims to ensure that the spirit of
José Manuel Barroso’s aim was to global citizenship – so evident during the
www.weforum.org
increase accountability in an effort to tsunami crisis – becomes a fixed feature of
focus on priorities and ownership in the world affairs. But the initiative’s second
search for long-term growth. report, launched at the Annual Meeting
2005, made headlines worldwide after
There was also a strong move by judging efforts to date worthy of just three
participants to eradicate corruption and points out of 10.
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Annual Meeting 2005
What tough choices do
global leaders face?
Once again, the Annual Meeting showed
the World Economic Forum at the hub of
world events. Emerging from one of the
most turbulent periods in Ukraine’s
history, the country’s newly elected
president, Victor Yushchenko, chose to
make his first appearance outside the
region in Davos, where he argued for his
country’s admission to NATO and the EU.
He also appealed for support from the
international business community as his
government prepared to reform Ukraine’s
economy, which he described as a
‘sleeping elephant’. The Forum
responded to his appeal, offering to host
the Extraordinary Roundtable in Kiev
during June.
A wide cross-section of leading political
figures from the US, among them 10
Senators – the highest number ever –
attended Davos. They included Senate
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10:41 AM Page 8
By working
together with
governments, faith-
based and other
non-governmental
organizations, we
can continue to
provide patients with
more equitable access to a broader range of
quality treatment options so we can halt the
spread of this pandemic.
US Senator Bill Frist,
following WHO/UNAIDS’ Davos announcement of new
estimates on anti-retroviral HIV/AIDS treatment
majority leader Bill Frist (Republican,
Tennessee), who spoke in a plenary
session on global health, and Senator
John McCain (Republican, Arizona), who
generated extensive media interest.
Once again, the Brazilian government
had a strong presence at the Annual
Meeting. Accompanied by six of his
ministers, President Luiz Inácio Lula da
Silva highlighted his country’s economic
achievements during a year of
exceptional growth.
As well as celebrating their people’s
successes, political leaders also embraced
the Annual Meeting as an opportunity to
resolve conflicts and address emotive
issues. At a plenary session, leaders from
Israel and the Palestinian Authority agreed
that there was renewed hope for a
resolution to their conflict. The consensus
came at a time when the Israelis were
Today, I am
proposing
that we go ahead by
creating, on an
experimental basis,
a levy to finance the
fight against AIDS.
Despite the
remarkable action of the Global Fund, the
WHO, the World Bank and bilateral donors,
we are failing in the face of
this terrible pandemic.
Jacques Chirac, President of France
preparing to dismantle settlements for the
first time since 1967 and Mahmoud
Abbas, newly-elected President of the
Palestinian Authority, had agreed to break
the ‘vicious cycle of conditionality’.
Referring to Davos, Israeli Vice-Prime
Minister Shimon Peres commented: “The
magic has returned to the mountain.”
Republic of Korea Minister of Unification
Chung Dong-Young used the platform at
Davos to send a clear message to North
Korea that it was still possible for the
country to re-engage in multilateral
discussions on the nuclear issues.
Participants also argued for a closer
dialogue between Europe and America.
They agreed that transatlantic partnership
is vital to future world stability and a major
factor in eradicating conflict and poverty.
At a separate session, politicians from
Annual Meeting 2005. From left: Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil, and Gordon Brown, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer.
I’m firmly
convinced
that globalization
bears greater
opportunities for all
... [But] we have to
help less-developed
nations to a much
greater degree than we have so far.
Gerhard Schröder,
Federal Chancellor of Germany
inside and outside the US debated
American foreign policy. Against a
background of simmering tensions over
Iraq, both sides stated that repairing their
relationship was essential to world security.
Participants ended the Annual Meeting
with a pledge to take tough choices
against the ignorance, disease and
pollution that threaten the world’s stability
and survival. With the emphasis firmly on
action and results, the meeting called for
concrete measures to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions, a fund to accelerate
financial aid to the poorest countries and
the removal of trade barriers.
Throughout the Annual Meeting,
participants pulled no punches when
reminding world leaders that tough choices
must go hand-in-hand with effective
solutions. France’s President Jacques
Chirac proposed a voluntary tax to fight
We have
every
confidence in the
future of China.
China cannot
develop in seclusion
and the world
cannot develop
without China’s development. Our set
policy is that we will not menace others,
even when we are developed.
Huang Ju, Chinese Executive Vice-Premier
poverty, warning of unrest if young people
in the developing world are deprived of a
future. Echoing these sentiments, Egypt’s
Prime Minister Ahmed Mahmoud Nazif
called for ‘modernization without
westernization’, advocating trade and
investment with a strong regional focus.
Concluding the summit on a similar note,
Professor Klaus Schwab, Founder and
Executive Chairman of the World Economic
Forum, called on participants to exercise
‘self-responsibility alongside global
responsibility’. The tsunami relief activity, he
said, had shown it could be done.
Open Forum Davos 2005
The Open Forum Davos, organized in
cooperation with Bread for All and the
Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches,
runs simultaneously with the Annual
Meeting. It is a clear demonstration of the
openness of our organization and our
willingness to engage in constructive
dialogue with the general public. This year’s
event attracted over 2,400 people – up
20% on last year. There was also a notable
increase in the volume of enquiries in the
run-up to the Annual Meeting and a wider
range of topics on the agenda. The event
drew a wide range of local people from all
walks of life, including schoolchildren,
teachers and 50 management trainees from
engineering services multinational ABB.
The overall theme was ‘When is the
economy ethical?’. The agenda struck a
balance between debates about long-
www.weforum.org
standing concerns and those of a more
topical nature, such as the role of the US
and post-tsunami aid. In all cases,
discussion progressed beyond the actual
surface issues to an exploration of
underlying causes.
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The regional agenda

What did our regional

communities achieve?
Japan’s
21st century
vision focuses on
In 2005, the Forum engaged proactive reforms
instead of reactive
with leaders of all reforms.
Heizo Takenaka,
nationalities in regional Japanese Minister of State
for Economic and Fiscal Policy and for Privatization of the
Postal Services
events and dialogue, sharing
strategic insights and taking
practical steps to improve
I do not
the state of the world. believe that
you can increase
shareholder value
over time if you are
not concerned
about all the
different
stakeholders who may be affected.
Michael Hawker, CEO and Managing Director of
Insurance Australia Group, at the Asia Roundtable
Bringing leaders – and communities – together: Victor Yushchenko, President of Ukraine (right), and
Aleksander Kwasniewski, President of Poland.

Each year, the World Economic Forum My concern
brings together key decision-makers in is that after
9/11 Islam is
regional activities to address the most
being more
crucial issues facing their locality. These misunderstood, and
events are recognized as the most time- I think it behooves
efficient and productive tool for senior us, as leaders in the
executives wishing to gain new insights Islamic world, to
really propagate this message that we
into the increasingly complex environment
are a religion of tolerance and peace.
in which they operate.
Shaukat Aziz, Prime Minister of Pakistan
Throughout 2004/2005 the Forum
focused on the most important regional We have
and global trends to understand how they to keep
up the momentum
affect an ever more interconnected world.
– politically,
We succeeded in establishing close security-wise and
working relationships with the economically. We
The number of organizations participating
in our regional activities increased by an
average of 30% on the previous year.
Together, key players from business,
government, academia and civil society
engaged in informal and open dialogue to
share first-hand information and insights,
seek solutions and define appropriate
courses of action for the most pressing
issues on regional agendas.
This year, the programme was
particularly successful, with all activities
having to close registration early due to
over-subscription.
Amplified by politicians, business people
and socially-engaged celebrities
worldwide, the message from our African
communities remained consistently
positive: Africa is changing and it is open
for business. This ‘Year of Africa’
message set the tone for the Africa
Economic Summit in Cape Town, where
participants engaged in passionate
discussions on how businesses can play
a decisive role in ‘re-branding’ Africa by
balancing the continent’s relentlessly
negative image with real cases of
achievement and success.
The summit agenda deliberately focused
Commissioners, most of them African,
are active specialists in their particular
spheres. They are responsible for
leading an examination of the
continent’s past and present and how
the international community can
contribute to its development.
More than 400 participants,
representing some 250 regional
businesses and multinationals, signed
their endorsement of the CfA report,
calling on the G-8 group of industrialized
nations to join together with business to
invest in Africa’s future.

Kamal Kharrazi, Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, left,
with Mowaffak Al Rubaie, National Security Adviser of
Iraq, at the Annual Meeting 2005.
governments that hosted each of our
summits and roundtables. They included
the governments of China, India, Jordan,
Qatar, Singapore, South Africa,
Switzerland and Ukraine.
have to create an
immediate sense
that peace is not just a promise, but
peace is an immediate change in
people’s lives.
Shimon Peres, Vice-Prime Minister of Israel and
Chairman of the Labour Party
www.weforum.org
Africa on building support for the key Throughout the run-up to the summit,
Our African communities were recommendations listed in a report there was a strong spirit of cooperation
instrumental in bringing Africa to published by the Commission for Africa between all those involved in its
the forefront of world attention – (CfA), published in March 2005. The CfA preparation and planning. In particular, the
arguably, one of the year’s most was launched at the beginning of 2004 Forum’s Africa team worked closely with
important achievements. by UK Prime Minister Tony Blair. Its 17 government representatives from across

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The regional agenda
Women are the backbone of Africa
and the Millennium Development
Goals cannot be reached without
addressing their problems and
making them part of the solution.
Hilde Johnson,
Minister of International Development of Norway
the continent and the United Kingdom,
chair of the G-8 group, when shaping
the agenda.
During the year, to celebrate a decade of
democracy in South Africa, we published
a collection of essays on the country by
Forum members. The proceeds of the
sell-out book were donated to the Nelson
Mandela Children’s Fund, which will use
Samar M. Dudin, founding manager and theatre director, Takween Theatre and Arts Workshop for Children and Youth,
Jordan, engaging with long-time socially-aware actor Richard Gere, USA, at the World Economic Forum in Jordan.
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10:43 AM Page 12
the money to provide homes and care for
orphans affected by AIDS.
Middle East
Creating the conditions for economic
stability and growth in the Middle East is
vital to the stability of the wider
international community. Throughout
2005, Forum initiatives in the region
delivered further tangible results.
Among the most significant
developments was the success of our
Arab Business Council (ABC) in involving
the private sector more closely in
sharpening the region’s competitive
edge and fulfiling its economic potential.
The ABC works closely with
governments to improve their national
competitiveness. It proactively supports
the creation of National Competitiveness
Councils (NCCs). Egypt now has a high-
profile and influential NCC while Bahrain,
Kuwait, Jordan, Qatar and Dubai are
following suit.
In 2004/2005, the Forum’s regional
activity continued to demonstrate its
position at the heart of global affairs.
‘Seize the Moment’ was, appropriately,
the theme of the World Economic Forum
in Jordan. Convened at a critical point in
the Middle East’s development, the event
coincided with a surge of optimism
throughout the region as the Israeli-
Palestinian peace process restarted and
the region’s oil producers enjoyed a
period of high liquidity.
King Abdullah II of Jordan and Laura Bush, First Lady of the US, at the World Economic Forum in Jordan.
Participants at this year’s Jordan
summit responded to the upbeat mood,
adding their full weight to accelerating
regeneration in the region. During the
‘town hall’ at the start of the event,
debate focused on the findings of an
extensive street survey conducted by
the Forum in partnership with Al-Arabiya
TV. This surveyed over 3,000 Arab
citizens on issues such as people power
in the Arab world; the US agenda in the
Middle East; the Israeli-Palestinian
peace process; the situation in Iraq; and
– most importantly – how to reform for
a better future.
Summit participants stressed the need to
‘seize the moment’ by acting decisively to
bridge the gap between the aspirations of
ordinary people and those of their leaders.
In total, the meeting brought together over
1,200 leaders from more than 56 countries,
including those representing the interests of
women and young people.
The sense of common purpose between
the Forum and Jordan continues to
grow. During the year, we took steps to
deepen our cooperation with HM King
Abdullah’s government through notable
initiatives such as Agenda 2010, a
framework of reform priorities for the
region. This project was completed in
time for the Jordan summit.
The high-level international support for,
and relevance of, the World Economic
Forum was also demonstrated at the
Arab Competitiveness Roundtable in
Qatar. The Doha event was attended
by many senior Middle East politicians,
among them ministers with economic
portfolios from Jordan, Kuwait, Pakistan,
Qatar and Syria.
Asia
The Forum held three timely summits
that focused on Asia’s growing
economic importance. The Asia
Roundtable in Singapore was called,
fittingly, ‘Tilting the Global Balance: The
Strategic Impact of Asia’s Growth’. In
opening the event, Singapore’s Prime
Minister Lee Hsien-Loong encouraged
leaders from business, government
and civil society to use the roundtable
as a platform to share the critical
insights necessary to develop the right
strategic response to the region’s
forecast growth.
Under a new arrangement with the
Forum, the Singapore Government
seconded an expert to our Business
Insight team, a move that further
reinforced our strong ties with
the country.
The China Business Summit, ‘China’s
Development: Balancing Fast and Smart
Growth’, engaged 556 participants. As
shortages of energy and natural
resources as well as environmental
degradation impact China’s effort to
maintain an 8-10% annual growth rate,
www.weforum.org
participants focused on the critical
issues of how the country could absorb
its labour surplus and reduce the
income disparity between the coastal
areas and the interior.
The Forum entered a cooperation
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WR0070_ARA_10-15_ok.qxd 9/1/05
Fidela E. Ebuk, CEO, Women’s Health and Economic Development Association, Nigeria, in discussion with Darcy Rezac,
MD of the Vancouver Board of Trade and international networking expert, Canada, at the Annual Meeting 2005.
agreement with the Beijing authorities
through the National Development and
Reform Commission of China (NDRC).
The purpose of the agreement is to
organize a scenario project examining
China’s future, an initiative targeted for
completion in early 2006. Overall, the
Forum’s relationship with the country
continues to thrive. Our proposals to
open an office in Beijing met with strong
support from the Chinese Government.
The emergence of India as a global
economic power became a compelling
story internationally in 2004/2005: the
key players gathered at the Forum’s
20th India Economic Summit in
December 2004. “For the first time,
there is universal acceptance that India
now rides a crest of a wave of reforms
and growth,” asserted Palaniappan
Chidambaram, India’s Finance Minister.
The theme ‘India: The New Dynamics’
reflected the emerging opportunities
and growth challenges at the core of
this assertion. The summit involved 631
leaders from all sectors in the region.
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10:43 AM Page 14
We live in Europe
a society The World Economic Forum gathered its
where people think
members and partners in June for the
they can realize
themselves through Extraordinary Ukraine Roundtable in
consumption... We Kiev, following the call of President
must not turn people Yushchenko at the Annual Meeting 2005
only into consumers in Davos to support his government in
but rather into empowered citizens.
its first difficult year in power. Over 300
Heba Ezzat, Lecturer at Cairo University, Egypt
leaders from business, politics, the
media, academia and other parts of
society followed this call and joined a
small, high-level gathering, which was
Africa’s water opened in the presence of presidents
problems can
from six countries. The roundtable was
only be solved
in cooperation characterized by an extremely strong
with business. engagement from the Ukrainian
Government, with the president, the
prime minister and virtually all key
Maria Mutagamba, Uganda Minister of State for Water ministers involved throughout
the meeting.
At the roundtable, participants obtained
first-hand insights into current and
upcoming market opportunities in
Ukraine and worked out a concrete, 10-
step working plan for the government to
continue the momentum of Ukraine’s
‘Orange Revolution’ and to improve
investor confidence. The working plan
was presented to President Yushchenko
in the closing plenary, causing a huge
echo in the local and international press.
Russia continues to play a critical role
in world affairs. In 2004/2005, we acted
decisively to engage policy-makers
and business leaders in Russia, as the
country prepares to take over
presidency of the G-8 in 2006. One
initiative included our Russia and the
World Scenario Project. With a
timescale of 20 years, this ambitious
initiative aims to involve the widest
possible cross-section of stakeholders
in formulating a sustainable
development framework for the
Russian Federation.
Latin America
In Latin America, as business and
political leaders continued to
acknowledge that IT inadequacies were
impairing economic growth, we made a
timely contribution. Joining forces with
one of our strategic partners, Microsoft,
we hosted meetings in five countries
The regional agenda
We don’t want to ignore ideological
differences, but we have to recognize
that there are problems in the world that
affect all of us. Brazil is doing its share to
reclaim that missing link between social
fairness and economic development.
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva,
President of Brazil
If the US across the region, to discuss relevant
economy learnings from the Forum’s fourth Global
slows, we are
Information Technology Report.
possibly going to
have some risk
and credit North America
problems in Asia Our international communities continued
and I am not sure to lead the drive for global corporate
we are thinking about this.
citizenship. In the US, participants at the
Koh Boon-Hwee, Chairman of Singapore Airlines
September Industry Meeting in New
York City promoted global corporate
citizenship by focusing on an agenda
There is that called for greater international
no chance collaboration backed by decisive action.
of being able to
Working in industry-specific groups,
meet our
infrastructure target participants identified the issues they
through public intended to pursue over the coming
resources alone. year.
Resources will have
to come from the private sector, both
The Forum’s Global Competitiveness
internal and foreign.
Programme entered into an agreement
Montek S. Ahluwalia,
Deputy Chairman of India’s Planning Commission with the US Agency for International
Development (USAID). Under the terms
www.weforum.org
of the agreement, the programme will
provide a source of information that
USAID can use to analyse the quality of
governance and economic performance
in countries that could potentially
receive development assistance.
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Industry Partnerships Strategic Insight

How did we help shape the

global business agenda?

In 2004/2005, we took significant steps in developing our

partnerships with industry and in identifying the emerging
risks and developments that are set to shape the world’s
business and political future.
Singapore is the world’s top economy in exploiting IT, according to the Forum’s Global Information Technology Report.

Industry Partnerships
Programme
To further strengthen our bonds with –
and value to – members, and to foster
closer engagement with industry, we
launched our Industry Partnerships
Programme in 2004/2005.
Our Industry Partners are set to build on
the achievements of our Industry
Governors, many of whom have already
joined the new Programme. Like the
Industry Governors who preceded them,
global and integrated perspective to the
Forum’s work.
We established the Industry
Partnerships Programme in response to
three principal drivers:
• Although the economy is global, there
are – with few exceptions – no global
industry associations. The Industry
Partnerships Programme provides a
dynamic forum to shape global
industry agendas.
makers to take timely action in the
face of constant change.
• The dynamics of each sector cannot
be addressed in isolation. By bringing
all sectors together under a single
banner, the Programme will make it
possible for organizations to follow
joint analysis with collaborative action.
Companies are chosen to participate in
the Industry Partnerships Programme on
the basis of their support for the
activities. These activities bring together
industry-specific communities where
members can share best practice,
carve out new insights and develop
proactive solutions to common
challenges through a process of
debate and knowledge sharing.
During 2004/2005, we successfully
launched Industry Partnerships in three pilot
sectors: IT/telecommunications, energy and
financial services. In its first nine months, 51
companies joined the Programme. By
and positive contribution to the Forum’s
mission during its first full year.
Working as a conduit between
our networks and communities, the
Centre brings increased focus and
direction to our activity. It is primarily
responsible for aiding members by
identifying the emerging risks and
developments that will shape future
business and political agendas
around the world.

our Industry Partners comprise a select
community of the world’s foremost
industry leaders drawn from a
representative cross-section of sectors
and regions. Their balanced diversity
ensures that they bring a comprehensive,
• Timescales are becoming shorter as
corporate strategy setting becomes
increasingly complex. The Industry
Partnerships Programme is designed
to enable top corporate decision-
Forum’s mission.
As part of the Programme, CEOs
and senior executives from partner
companies take part in a structured
and strategically focused mix of
2008, we plan to have created 300
Industry Partnerships across 12 sectors.
Centre for Strategic Insight
Launched in 2004, the Centre for
Strategic Insight made an immediate
www.weforum.org
This year, the Centre played a pivotal
role in designing the programme for
the Annual Meeting, with its emphasis
on the tough decisions faced by
global leaders.

16 17
WR0070_ARA_16-25_ok.qxd 9/1/05
Strategic Insight
The Forum’s Global
Competitiveness
Programme provides the most
comprehensive and authoritative
assessment of national economies’
ability to compete, so helping global
business and political leaders
improve their performance.
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10:56 AM Page 18
The Forum’s Global Competitiveness
Programme is a core part of the
Centre’s work. It provides the most
comprehensive and authoritative
assessment of national economies’
ability to compete, so helping global
business and political leaders improve
their performance.
The reports it publishes have won
international respect as unique
benchmarking tools. Among other
audiences, they support governments
seeking to foster economic growth;
businesses developing strategies;
academics analysing national
economies; and civil society
organizations learning more about their
countries’ competitive strengths.
In October, the programme unveiled its
flagship publication, The Global
Competitiveness Report, at a press
conference in New York. Covering a
record 104 countries, the report
attracted unprecedented levels of media
coverage, making headlines in over
100 major publications worldwide. Its
launch drew a record number of hits on
the Forum’s website. It was also the
subject of a March competitiveness
seminar in Moscow.
The Centre plans to increase the
effectiveness of the report by including
an additional 15 economies in the next
publication, with an emphasis on
including developing countries. This will
take the total number of economies
covered to 119.
In May, the Global Competitiveness
Programme launched its milestone
study, Woman’s Empowerment:
Measuring the Global Gender Gap. The
study quantifies the gap between men
and women in five critical areas:
economic participation, economic
opportunity, political empowerment,
educational attainment, health and well-
being. It is designed to help countries
identify their strengths and weaknesses
in advancing women’s interests – an
area of critical importance to national
economic development.
Partnership and Governance
Two other reports published by the
Centre – The Global Information
Technology Report 2004-2005 and
The Arab World Competitiveness
Report 2005 – also gained a great
deal of awareness through wide,
positive coverage.
Meanwhile, the Centre’s Global Risks
Programme continued to lead analysis
of the biggest challenges facing
business today. Through collaboration
with the Forum’s networks and
communities, this assesses the
potential fall-out from three converging
forces: technology-driven globalization,
the information overload and the
constancy of change. Launched in
2004, it has now published its first
guide to the major risks confronting the
global economy. How did we further global
corporate citizenship?
The Jordan Education Initiative has helped thousands of young people improve their IT skills. Here, Queen Rania of
Jordan, World Economic Forum Foundation Board member and head of the nomination committee for the Forum’s
Young Global Leaders group, meets schoolgirls in Amman.
The world’s major challenges cannot be met alone. In The statement, signed by each of the
participating chief executives, emphasizes
2004/2005, our Global Institute for Partnership and the need to act on climate change and
stresses the importance of market-based
Governance engaged different organizations and individuals, solutions. It called on governments to
from all sectors, in addressing crucial international issues. establish ‘clear, transparent and consistent
price signals’ through creation of a long-
Our Global Institute for Partnership and The Roundtable comprises 24 companies term policy framework that includes all
Governance was founded in 2003/2004. It representing a broad cross-section of major emitters of greenhouse gases.
provides a platform for multistakeholder industry sectors: energy, transport, metals
partnerships, striving to tackle global and mining, financial services, electricity, The statement also highlights the need for
challenges by galvanizing action, improving construction and engineering, high tech, technology incentive programmes that use
governance and bridging the gap between and communications. They are based in 11 performance-based standards to
divergent perspectives. During its first full different nations, including Russia, Canada, accelerate commercialization of low carbon
year, the Institute made sound progress in Brazil, the US, South Africa, Japan and technologies, and calls for a ‘new
a wide range of areas. several countries from the EU. partnership’ between the G-8 countries
and China, India, Brazil, South Africa and
G-8 Climate Change Following an initial CEO meeting with Mexico to facilitate private investment in
Roundtable Prime Minister Blair at Davos, climate low carbon infrastructure. Many of the
The G-8 Climate Change Roundtable was change experts from each of the points raised were reflected in the final
launched at the Annual Meeting 2005 in companies met three times in London at Climate Change Communiqué and Plan of
Davos in response to a request from UK workshops co-hosted by the Forum and Action that emerged from the Gleneagles’
www.weforum.org
Prime Minister Tony Blair for business’s the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Summit, especially the emphasis on
perspectives on climate change in the run- Office. These experts developed core market-based solutions.
up to July’s G-8 Summit in Gleneagles, recommendations in a statement
Scotland. Mr Blair chaired the summit in his presented at a second meeting with the
role as President of the G-8 for 2005. prime minister in London on 9 June.
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Partnership and Governance Our members and partners

The contribution
Forum members
make to global citizenship
was clearly evident
following the tsunami that
struck South East Asia in
December 2004.
Global Health Initiative
The Global Health Initiative (GHI) continues
its work to increase the breadth and depth
of private sector engagement in the fight
against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria
in Asia and Africa through public-private
partnership. To date, the GHI has advised
over 200 companies on prevention and
treatment programmes in the workplace
and community.
Key successes this year include the
alliance of business partners to coordinate
humanitarian relief efforts on four
continents. Its post-tsunami relief and
recovery activity proved an inspiring
example of the public-private collaborative
model in action. Based at Sri Lanka’s
Bandaranaike International Airport, the
DRN’s Airport Emergency Team handled
over 7,400 tons of relief supplies in 24
days. In total, it contributed an estimated
US$ 1.7 million in volunteer labour and
services to emergency relief efforts in the
afflicted region.
Global Corporate Citizenship
Initiative
Meanwhile, the Forum’s Global Corporate
Citizenship Initiative – established to
improve corporate social responsibility
engagement worldwide – published two
milestone reports during 2004/2005. The
first, Partnering for Success, written in
collaboration with the International
Business Leaders Forum, examined
lessons learned by companies from their
concrete projects as well as a working
group that is identifying gaps in how people
from Western and Muslim countries are
educated about each other.
Jordan Education Initiative
Private-public partnerships are core to
Global Institute activity. During the year, two
important partnerships made particularly
encouraging progress. The Jordan
Education Initiative is designed to transform
education through technology. It has now
evolved into a true partnership involving
around 35 organizations supporting over
10,000 students in more than 50 schools.
Having attracted substantial funding, the
partners plan to replicate the Jordanian
model in the Palestinian Authority, Egypt,
Our members and partners
India and beyond.
Co-chairs of the Annual Meeting 2005, from top left: N.R. Narayana Murthy,
Chairman of the Board and Chief Mentor, Infosys Technologies, India;
Water Initiative Lubna S. Olayan, Chief Executive Officer, Olayan Financing Company, Saudi
Arabia; Charles Prince, Chief Executive Officer, Citigroup, USA.
Sustainable supplies of good water are From bottom left: Bill Gates, Co-Founder, Bill and Melinda Gates
fundamental to achieving the Forum’s Foundation, and Chairman and Chief Software Architect, Microsoft
Corporation, USA; Daniel Vasella, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer,
mission. Our Water Initiative – which draws Novartis, Switzerland; John A. Thain, Chief Executive Officer, New York
strongly on input from the private sector – Stock Exchange, USA.

second anniversary of the India Alliance to
Stop TB, a sustainable partnership with
seven of India’s top ten companies, the
country’s Ministry of Health, the World
Health Organization and Confederation of
Indian Industry. In 2005, the GHI also
began expanding its geographic focus to
include China, where an alliance influencing
a large network of migrant workers is now
in its formative stages.
To foster public and private sector
collaboration at senior level, the GHI
strengthened private sector
representation on the boards of Roll Back
Malaria and Stop TB, In addition, it
continues to serve in the private sector
delegation of the Global Fund to fight
HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria. The GHI
lobbied to keep these three diseases as
emergency issues on the global agenda
in 2005.
Disaster Resource Network
The contribution Forum members make to
global citizenship was clearly evident
following the tsunami that struck South
private-public partnerships. The second
report, Mainstreaming Responsible
Investment, in collaboration with
AccountAbility, proposed a detailed
reform agenda for improving the way the
investment community integrates non-
financial aspects of corporate
performance into its investment decisions.
Council of 100 Leaders
One of the main ways in which the
Forum aims to further global citizenship
is through bringing people of different
origins together. A key example of this is
its Council of 100 Leaders. This global
community comprises senior leaders
dedicated to promoting greater
cooperation and understanding between
Western and Muslim societies.
Launched at the Annual Meeting 2004,
the Council is the driving force behind
the Forum’s West-Islamic World
Dialogue Initiative. During the year, the
Council’s meetings at Davos and Jordan
were instrumental in bonding its members
into a cohesive and powerful force for
positive change. Together, they have
supports multistakeholder cooperation in
the management of water and watersheds
worldwide. During 2004/2005, the initiative
focused on advancing specific water
partnerships in Africa while laying
foundations for similar projects in Asia.
For more information about the Global
Institute for Partnership and Governance,
see www.weforum.org/GIPG
Partnership is central to improving the state
of the world. We work with influential
businesses drawn from all industry sectors
and geographical regions. Together, we
seek to tackle the most complex and
challenging issues facing mankind.
Members
Our members are more than just powerful
and influential. They include innovative and
inspiring organizations, with the expertise
and passion to challenge conventional
thinking in pursuit of solutions that deliver
results and improve our world.
We refer to our members as ‘Globals’,
‘Regionals’ or ‘Shapers’.
• ‘Global’ members represent the world’s
top 1,000 companies and have an annual
turnover of more than US$ 4 billion each.
They make up 60% of our membership.
Overall, there was a 5% increase in
members from the Business
Week/Forbes list of the world’s 1,000
membership and are selected on the
strength of their talent for innovation
Organizations applying to become Forum
members undergo a rigorous selection
process based on strict rules. On average,
our membership committee accepts just
one out of every three applications.
The last two years have seen a continuing
escalation in the quality and quantity of our
members. During 2004/2005, the number
of new members doubled to 154, while the
number of organizations leaving the Forum
has virtually halved. At the same time,
several members demonstrated their
commitment to the Forum, and its mission,
by becoming partners.
During 2004/2005, the World Economic
Forum accepted the following new
members: Abram Capital, Abu Dhabi Water
& Electricity Authority (ADWEA), Advent
International Corporation, Aladdin Group,
Hipotecario SA, BankMuscat (SAOG), Bank
of Ireland Group, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi
Ltd, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise, BASF
AG, Bayerische Hypo- und Vereinsbank AG
(HVB), BBC World, Belron International BV,
Brevan Howard Asset Management LLP,
Cadence Design Systems Inc., Capitalia
SpA, Caterpillar Inc., Centrica Plc, CEZ AS
(Czech Power Company), China
Development Bank, China Minmetals
Corporation, Citadel Investment Group
LLC, Convergys Corporation, Corel
Corporation, Crescendo Ventures, Dubai
Holding, Eagle River Investments, EFG –
Hermes Holding, Enany Group of
Companies, Enel SpA, Eni SpA, Eurohypo
AG, EZZ Industries, Federation of Syrian
Chambers of Commerce, Fiat SpA, Fisher
Scientific International Inc., Freeport
McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc., Freescale
Semiconductor, Gap Inc., GeoPost
International Management & Development
Holding GmbH, Gerdau SA, Grupo
Industrial Lala, Gulf Air Company, Habib

East Asia in December 2004.
The Forum’s Disaster Resource Network
(DRN) played an important role in the
international relief effort. Launched four
years ago, the DRN draws together an
www.weforum.org
crystallized a vision in which Western and largest companies Alfa Laval Corporate AB, American Bank Limited, Heinrich Deichmann Schuhe
Muslim societies discuss their differences • ‘Regional’ members are drawn from International Group (AIG) Inc., Amerindian GmbH & Co., Henry Schein Inc., H&Q Asia
openly while advancing their common the leading companies in their Investment Advisors Inc., Arab Bank Plc, Pacific, Hummer Winblad Venture Partners,
interests with an overriding respect for the particular region and represent 30% of Archstone-Smith Trust, Asian Paints (India) Huntsman Corporation, India Brand Equity
dignity and humanity of their cultures. In Forum membership Limited, Asia Resource Corporation Pte Foundation, Industrial Development and
2004/2005, the Council launched several • ‘Shapers’ constitute 10% of our Ltd, Attijariwafa Bank, Bain Capital, Banco Renovation Organization of Iran (IDRO),

20 21
WR0070_ARA_16-25_ok.qxd 9/1/05
Our members and partners
We are constantly…asking our
teams and our co-workers and our
board: how can we be more effective, how
can we be better leaders?…In an industry
where the variables are changing so
quickly if you’re not changing at or faster
than the rate of those changes, you’re
going to fall off very quickly.
Michael S. Dell, Chairman of the Board, Dell, USA, and member of
the Foundation Board of the World Economic Forum
Insurance Australia Group Ltd (IAG),
Interbank, International Development Law
Organization (IDLO), International
Organization for Standardization (ISO),
Europe, Interpipe Group, Invitrogen
Corporation, ITI Group, JSC Russian
Railways (RZD), KB Home, KfW
Bankengruppe, Korea First Bank, Lippo
Group, LSI Logic Corporation, Mahindra &
Mahindra Ltd, Marriott Lodging
International, Mashreqbank PSC,
MediaNews Group, Mitsui Sumitomo
Insurance Co. Ltd, Nahas Enterprises
Group, National Health Service (NHS),
Network Appliance Inc., Nishat Group of
Companies, Norsk Hydro Asa, Olympus
Capital Holdings Asia, Orascom Telecom
Holding SAE, Oriental Weavers Group,
Pacific Investment Management Company
(PIMCO), Pakistan International Airlines
(PIA), Partners Group, Pitney Bowes Inc.,
Pon Holdings BV, Powszechny Zaklad
Ubezpieczen SA, Prospect Venture
Partners, Qatar Airways, Qualcomm Inc.,
Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd, Red Hat, Inc.,
Roll International Corporation, Sal.
Oppenheim Jr & Cie KGaA, Sanpaolo IMI
Spa, Seagate Technology Inc., Shougang
Group, Singapore Airlines Limited (SIA), S-
Oil Corporation, Solectron Corporation,
South Africa Foundation, Sucocitrico
Cutrale Ltda, Sultan Center for Food
Products, Swiss Life Group (Swiss Life
Holding), Tata Consultancy Services Ltd,
Teijin Ltd, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson,
TeleTech Holdings, Inc., Texas Pacific
Group, The British Land Company Plc,
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10:56 AM Page 22
The Dawood Group, The St Paul Travelers
Companies, Inc., The Thomson
Corporation, The Timken Company, Third
Point Management Company LLC,
Thomson, Tomkins Plc, TPG Ventures,
TXU Corp., Unisys Corporation, United
Business Media Plc, Univar Corporation,
Univar NV, URS Corporation, Valeo,
Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck
GmbH & Co. KG, Woodside Petroleum
Ltd, Yasar Holding AS, Yuhan-Kimberly
Ltd, Zenith Bank Plc, Zinifex Ltd.
Partners
Our strategic partners are select
member companies of the World
Economic Forum, who strongly support
the Forum’s mission. Their executives
provide vital leadership to our global,
regional and industry programmes,
contributing their expertise and
resources at the highest level to
advance worldwide economic and
social progress. Their guidance
helps ensure that our initiatives
and programmes remain relevant
and focused.
As well as intellectual guidance,
strategic partners also contribute
essential financial and in-kind support to
the Forum’s operations and activities. In
some cases, partners second
executives to the Forum. This gives us
access to specialist expertise while
offering secondees interesting
development opportunities.
In addition to the strategic partners, the
Forum has 15 companies that partner us
on industry programmes, another 26
businesses that partner us on regional
events, and many more that support our
private–public initiatives.
Last year, our partners held two notable
meetings. The first was their traditional
brainstorming session at the Annual
Meeting, where partners contributed to the
agenda. The second – the Industry
Agenda meeting – took place in New York
and focused on identifying key themes for
the Industry Governors meeting.
By the end of the year, we had 49
strategic partners. This number decreased
by only three during 2004/2005, even
though we introduced a price increase of
25% across most of our strategic partner
contracts. As of 30 June, our strategic
partners were: ABB, Accel Partners,
Accenture, Apax Partners, Audi, Bain &
Company, Barclays Capital, Barco, The
Boeing Company, Booz Allen Hamilton,
BT, Cisco Systems, The Coca-Cola
Company, Computer Associates
International, Deloitte, Deutsche Bank,
DHL, Dubai Holding, Economic
Development Board of Bahrain, Ernst &
Young, Fluor Corporation, HP, IBM
Corporation, Infosys Technologies,
Investcorp, KPMG, Kudelski Group,
Manpower, Marsh & McLennan
Companies, McKinsey & Company, Merck
& Co., Merrill Lynch, Microsoft
Corporation, Nakheel, Nestlé, New York
Stock Exchange, Nike, PepsiCo, Pfizer,
PricewaterhouseCoopers, Qatar Airways,
Reliance Industries, Saudi Basic Industries
Corporation (SABIC), Siemens, Swiss Re,
Time Warner, UBS, Volkswagen and
Zurich Financial Services.
Communities
To increase the breadth and depth of
specialist expertise at our disposal, the
Forum has created communities of
member and partner companies, and
encourages them to interact whenever
relevant and productive.
International
Business Council
In 2004/2005, the International Business
Council (IBC) met twice and continued
to address business issues of global
importance.
Key events included a private meeting
with Huang Ju, Executive Vice-Premier
of the People’s Republic of China; a
joint update on trade from Robert
Zoellick, US Deputy Secretary of State,
and Pascal Lamy, former EU Trade
Commissioner and – from 31 August –
Director-General of the World Trade
Organization; and an enlightening
exchange of views on how to create a
great company. In addition, Council
members made an active contribution to
the Annual Meeting agenda.
Constituencies
Advisory Groups
Our Advisory Groups cover a range of
interests – from religious bodies and
non-governmental organizations to
academic institutions and trade unions.
Their purpose is to assist other key
stakeholders in the global economy to
engage in, and help shape, World
Our communities and constituencies
Our communities
and constituencies
Economic Forum activities. During this
year’s Annual Meeting, we inaugurated
two regional Advisory Groups – one in
India, the other in China – to support
our development strategy in Asia.
Forum Faculty
The Forum Faculty is one of our
richest sources of intellectual capital.
Its members include many of the
world’s most distinguished thinkers,
experts, scientists, commentators
and cultural leaders.
Faculty members contribute to the
development of the Annual Meeting
and/or regional events, take part in
sessions, and assist in workshops,
governor meetings and Industry
Partnership activities.
Women Leaders
Our Women Leaders Programme
is dedicated to building a worldwide
network of female leaders, creating
a mentoring arrangement between
upcoming and established women,
and ensuring that they interact closely
with the Forum of Young Global
Leaders. It remains focused on
supporting the advancement of women
leaders while ensuring that issues
affecting women are addressed in the
global arena.
The proportion of woman participants at
the Annual Meeting 2005 reached an
all-time high of 15% but we are not
satisfied with this ratio and will continue
our efforts to increase it.
Technology Pioneers
Technology Pioneers – chief executives
from the world’s most innovative
companies – remain integral to the
Forum’s efforts to create a better world.
The external advisory board that selects
the Forum’s Technology Pioneers
comprises technology experts from
various fields. Its strength is one of the
principal factors underpinning the
programme’s success.
In 2004/2005, the calibre of the new
Technology Pioneers was again
exemplary. From 107 candidates, the
board selected 29 companies. They
were chosen on the strength of their
response to four emerging trends:
demographic shifts driven by low birth
rates and rising life expectancy; the
impeding ‘energy crunch’ and the need
to find alternative fossil fuel sources; the
switch from fixed to mobile IT devices;
and heightened security concerns.
Once again, the Technology Pioneers
made an invaluable contribution to
Forum initiatives, task forces and
events, notably the Annual Meeting.
Future challenges include maintaining the
high standard of members, while ensuring
they are drawn from a representative
regional base. In order to sustain the
contribution of Technology Pioneers all
www.weforum.org
year round, they will increasingly be
invited to regional summits.
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Our communities and constituencies
We’ve seen an
incredible variety
of Technology Pioneers:
from companies with just
a few employees to large,
million-dollar corporations.
Regardless of their size, all
focus on making a positive
impact on society.
Anne Taylor, Chief Strategy Officer,
Deloitte, USA
Civil society and NGOs
The World Economic Forum has always
recognized the importance of engaging
civil society, encouraging its
representatives to articulate their views
at all our events. During 2004/2005, we
continued to foster strong relationships
with an expanding cross-section of
unions and non-governmental
organizations (NGOs).
These relationships proved invaluable
to progressing such programmes as
the Global Health Initiative and the
Partnership Against Corruption
Initiative, the latter benefiting, for
example, from the involvement of
Transparency International.
24
10:56 AM Page 24
Towards the summit: Young Global Leaders at their inaugural meeting, entitled ‘The World in 2020’,
in Zermatt, Switzerland, June 2005.
Other NGOs that made a significant
contribution to the Forum’s work during
the year included Amnesty International
and the International Alliance of Save
the Children, Oxfam and WWF.
In total, 55 NGOs attended this year’s
Annual Meeting, where organizations from
Swiss civil society were instrumental to
the success of the Open Forum.
Sister organizations
The Forum of Young Global Leaders
and the Schwab Foundation for Social
Entrepreneurship both collaborate
closely with the Forum as sister
organizations. While the former is
moving towards full independent
status, the latter is already a fully
independent foundation.
The Forum of Young
Global Leaders
The creation of the Forum of Young
Global Leaders was announced in
January 2004 by Professor Klaus
Schwab and was created with funds he
received on being awarded the US$ 1m
Dan David Prize, for helping to build the
Forum into an organization that works
for peace and social responsibility.
Comprising dynamic and inspiring
leaders up to the age of 40, it was
established in response to the growing
consensus that the interlocking
challenges confronting our world – from
now, into the future – demand
integrated solutions based on a holistic,
forward-looking vision.
It aims to define a vision for a better
world – and to translate that vision into
results by 2020. To this end, members
will initially focus on the 2020 Initiative,
which addresses fundamental issues
such as development, poverty, health,
security, environmental matters and
global governance.
Selected from over 8,000 candidates,
the forum’s first 238 members represent
69 countries. Drawn from all sectors,
more than 30% of them are women.
They were chosen by a nomination
committee comprising some of the
world’s most eminent media leaders.
Under the theme ‘The World in 2020’,
the group held its inaugural summit at
Zermatt, Switzerland, in June 2005.
Here, 200 participants outlined a plan of
action to shape their immediate direction.
The nomination committee, which is
headed by Queen Rania of the
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, will
announce the second group of around
220 young leaders in January 2006. The
group will be split equally between the
business and non-business sectors.
The forum’s launch won extensive
international coverage in over 100 of the
world’s most authoritative newspapers.
The Schwab Foundation for
Social Entrepreneurship
The World Economic Forum works
closely with the Schwab Foundation for
Social Entrepreneurship, to promote
profitable businesses with a public
purpose. This reflects the Forum’s belief
that global citizenship and sustainable
capitalism should never become
mutually exclusive.
Together, the two organizations showcase
businesses that combine financial
success with the drive to achieve social
and environmental change. The
Foundation’s network comprises 84
members, 15 of them selected during
2004/2005 through a rigorous
Social Entrepreneur company Riders for Health enables healthcare workers from several African countries to reliably
service remote areas, lowering infant and maternal mortality rates. With each motorcycle it runs, 20,000 receive
primary healthcare every year (www.riders.org).
international competition process.
The new members come from Brazil,
Cambodia, India, Japan, Kenya, Mexico,
Nepal, Paraguay, Pakistan, Peru, the
UK and the US.
To promote awareness of social
entrepreneurship, in January 2005 the
Schwab Foundation launched an
ambitious campaign to identify a ‘Social
Entrepreneur of the Year’ in 24
countries. Carefully-chosen media
partners in each country will manage the
selection process. National committees
will comprise business and academic
leaders and, wherever possible, will also
include Foundation representatives and
Forum members.
As part of another important initiative,
the Foundation established a new
partnership with the global law firm
Linklaters to review the legal and
financial restraints on promoting social
entrepreneurship in Brazil, Germany,
Poland, the UK and the US.
During the year, five Social
Entrepreneurs attended a Harvard
Executive Course and three received
pro-bono consulting work with
PricewaterhouseCoopers.
www.weforum.org
25
 Our organization

Our organization

The 2004/2005 World Economic Forum Managing Board with the Executive
Chairman. Top, from left: Rick Samans, André Schneider, Ged Davis, Klaus
Schwab, Thomas Glanzmann, Michel Ogrizek, Frédéric Sicre, Peter Torreele.

What we do The Managing Board
The Managing Board acts as the executive
body of the Foundation. It ensures that
activities fulfil the mission of the World
Economic Forum and acts as its
representative to outside parties. For
member. Henry McKinnell was
unanimously elected to succeed him.
During the year, the Forum welcomed
Maurice Lévy, Chairman and CEO of
Publicis Group, France, as a member of
the Foundation Board.
The committees of the
Foundation Board
The Foundation Board appoints four
committees from among its members:
• The Executive Committee prepares the
decisions of the Foundation Board and

Global Competitiveness Programme

more information about the oversees the Managing Board
Managing Board, visit On 30 June 2005, the Foundation • The Audit Committee ensures
Annual Meeting www.weforum.org/managingboard Board consisted of: compliance with all financial, accounting
Global initiatives Klaus Schwab, Executive Chairman and control processes
Global Risk Programme
The Foundation Board Josef Ackermann, Vice-Chairman • The Evaluation and Remuneration
The Foundation Board is responsible for Henry A. McKinnell, Vice-Chairman Committee recommends candidates for
A L inspiring business and public confidence by Kurt Alig, Secretary positions on the Managing Board and
OB ensuring a flawless standard of governance. Peter Brabeck-Letmathe monitors their performance
GL
Board members are individuals with unique Lord Carey • The Mission Compliance Committee
Shaping leadership experience from business, Victor L.L. Chu reviews Forum policies, strategies and
the REGIONAL Regional meetings politics, academia and civil society. Flavio Cotti activities in light of its mission
agenda Regional initiatives Michael S. Dell
Regional scenarios The Board’s role includes: managing the Carly Fiorina For more information about the
IN
D US
statutes of the World Economic Forum; Niall FitzGerald Foundation Board, visit
TR appointing new members; determining and Orit Gadiesh www.weforum.org/foundationboard
Y monitoring execution of Forum strategies, Rajat Gupta
and defining the roles of the Managing Nobuyuki Idei
Board and committees. Caio Koch-Weser
Maurice Lévy
Industry Partnerships
Membership criteria includes integrity, global Heinrich von Pierer
(Governors meetings)
vision, leadership experience and HM Queen Rania of the Hashemite
Industry initiatives
participation in world affairs. Kingdom of Jordan
Peter Sutherland

www.weforum.org
In November, William Turner handed over William I.M. Turner
his responsibilities as a Vice-Chairman of Ernesto Zedillo
the Foundation Board, but remains a

26 27
 Our organization
Structure
The Forum’s structure consists of six core
departments: Community Management,
Community Development, the Global
Institute for Partnership and Governance,
the Centre for Strategic Insight,
Communications, and Events and
Resources Management.
Community Management
Community Management is responsible
for managing relations with the 1,000
world-leading companies that make up
the Forum’s key constituency. The 30-
strong team focuses on forging
relationships with global communities of
business leaders drawn from around 15
industry sectors.
It is committed to fostering engagement
between Forum members through the
Industry Partnerships Programme. This
year’s priorities include building on the
programme’s early success by expanding
it to include at least eight of its 15
industry sectors.
Community Development
The Community Development team
delivers value to members and potential
members via a series of regional and
national meetings.
The department has six regional teams
who focus on the most important
regional and global trends to
understand how they affect an
increasingly interconnected world.
28
Global Institute for Partnership
and Governance
The Global Institute for Partnership and
Governance was created by the World
Economic Forum to broaden the
application of public-private
partnerships to some of the world’s
most pressing problems.
The Institute consolidates all of our
task forces and initiatives and is a
comprehensive resource for companies
seeking to engage with the public
sector to tackle global issues.
Centre for Strategic Insight
The Centre for Strategic Insight works
with the Forum’s network of
communities, such as business leaders,
NGOs and policy-makers to create
relevant strategic insight.
The Centre has four core teams,
focusing on business insight,
global insight, economics and
competitiveness, and global and
regional agendas.
Communications
The Communications department
consists of three teams, focusing on the
World Economic Forum's website,
publications and media relations.
The three teams work together to
publicize the Forum's work and to
explain to members and non-members
alike how it delivers on its mission.
Events and Resources
Management
Each year the World Economic Forum
brings together thousands of decision-
makers in meetings and regional
summits to address the most crucial
issues facing mankind.
To maintain quality and effectiveness,
we have a team with unique knowledge
and experience in developing such high-
calibre events.
The Forum community
Our people reflect the diversity of our membership, being drawn
from 40 countries. Their skills and experience are central to the
fulfilment of our mission. Last year they included:
Chairman’s Office
Klaus Schwab, Executive Chairman
Monika Boerlin, Sandra Costa-Marini, Claudia Gonzalez, Stéphanie
Nassenstein, Juraj Ondrejkovic, Fiona Paua, Regula Waltenspuel,
Maryse Zwick.
Community Management
Thomas Glanzmann, Managing Director
David Aikman, Stefano Ammirati, Mercedes Aubert, Alain
Baumann, Mireille Bertolini Cabezas, Giancarlo Bruno, Théa
Chiesa, Séverine Currit, Mahasti Dadressan, Magguy Deleaval,
Samantha Dimeck, Cristiana Falcone, Réka Fogarasi Musso,
Christoph Frei, Nadia Guillot Socquet, Susanne Helmsley, Laura
Italici, Anna Janczak, Helena Leurent, Matthew McSorley, Viraj
Mehta, Nathan Monash, Tanya Mounier, Simon Mulcahy, Andrew
Richards, Samantha Sampietri, Susan Simmons, Elena Smirnova,
Martha Stack, Kevin Steinberg, Anand Sunderji, Mady Tissot, Silvia
Von Gunten, Alex Wong.
Community Development
Peter Torreele, Managing Director
Haiko Alfeld, Thomas Berglund, Helen Besson, Els Boekhoudt,
Fabienne Chanavat, Kavita Choudhry, Daniel Davies, Natalia de la
Huerga, Yvonne Diallo, Sherif El Diwany, Meaza Essenberg, Anne
Catherine Gay des Combes, Serge Guex, Felix Howald,
Lee Howell, Giuseppe Iorio, Julian Jaeger, Jeremy Jurgens,
Carmen Keller-Baretto, Béatrice Laenzlinger, Macha Levinson,
Colette Mathur, Amal Mbarki, Grant McKibbin, Sylvie Naville, Lucien
Rieben, Kifah Salameh, Jessica Saulle, Solène Sfeir, Uschi Trouilhet,
Marika Volosin, Christophe Weber, Carolina Windmeijer, Li Zhang,
Reza Zia-Ebrahimi.
Global Institute for Partnership and Governance
Rick Samans, Managing Director
Pratik Bhatnagar, Francesca Boldrini, Alexandra Dauphin, Elizabeth
Dreier, Stefanie Held, Andreï Iatsenia, Emma Jupp, Carina Larsfälten,
Jason Liu, Monica Lodygensky, Satya Rajan, Clementina Todor,
Valerie Weinzierl.
Centre for Strategic Insight
Ged Davis, Managing Director
Sven Behrendt, Judith Binzegger, Jennifer Blanke, Carla Boeckman,
Nathalie Cerutti, Johannah Christensen, Ibrahim Cotran, Simone
The Forum community
Droz, Margareta Drzeniek, Ilaria Frau, Oliver Haugen, Kerry Jaggi,
Stéphanie Janet, Alia Karaouni, Emma Loades, Augusto Lopez-
Claros, Thierry Malleret, Irene Mia, Bud Ris, Justina Roberts, Sarah
Saffar, Shubhra Saxena, Jonathan Schmidt, Vidhi Tambiah,
Alexander Van de Putte, Saadia Zahidi.
Communications
Michel Ogrizek, Managing Director
Mark Adams, Marie-Laure Burgener, Laura Deal, Richard Evans,
Nina Joyce, Kamal Kimaoui, Matthias Lüfkens, Fon Mathuros,
Laurent Sfumat, Fabienne Stassen, Samantha Tonkin, Isabelle
Tornare, Nancy Tranchet, Yann Zopf.
Events and Resources Management
André Schneider, Managing Director and Chief Operating
Officer
Chantal Adamson, Ntsoa Arintsoa, Helena Baars, Virginie Bays,
Grégory Bernarda, Emmanuelle Blaser Morel, Nadine Bonard, Doris
Borchardt, Damian Buchs, Denise Burnet, Nancy Chazal,
Raymonde Christmann, Steve Crettenand, Irène Croisier-Rapin,
Stéphanie Danhier, Laura de Wolf, Jean-Loup Denereaz, Maggie
Fliege, Floriane Freymond, Yannick Fuentes, Agnès Gabirout, Malte
Godbersen, Karine Guitton, Elly Hammar, Nour-Eddine Iguimdrane,
George Jacovides, Julianne Jammers, Carine Kulloian, George
Kumpera, Madeleine Manusia, Martine Michaud, Annabell Molnar,
Anouk Pache, Annemarie Peter, Manuella Quilez, Petra Ruiz, Mehru
Ruiz-Faizi, Wouter Savrij Droste, Pascale Schibli,
Angela Scioscia, Christel Sutherland, Ursula Wehrli-Köpper,
Sarah-Jane Zeller.
Global Leaders and Special Groups
Frédéric Sicre, Managing Director
Paula Verholen.
Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship
Pamela Hartigan, Managing Director
Solenn de Kersauson, Maria Hermoso, Sandor Nagy, Rodrigo
Sanchez Saavedra, Mirjam Schoening.
The Forum of Young Global Leaders
Nicole Schwab Sanchez, Director
Martina Gmür, Rosanna Mastrogiacomo, Magdalena Thurig,
www.weforum.org
Catherine Vindret.
These details reflect the situation on 30 June 2005.
29
 The Forum community

Our people

Some of the World Economic Forum team, reflecting our focus on diversity.

The skills, knowledge and dedication of The programme will prepare

Nationality Numbers* Nationality Numbers*
our people are essential to fulfiling our exceptionally talented individuals for
American 21 Polish 3
mission. Last year we recruited a leadership roles in an increasingly
Argentinian 1 Romanian 1
number of new people, expanding and complex and interdependent world.
Australian 3 Russian 1
reinforcing our skill-base to better
Belgian 2 Slovak 1
support our members. In September 2005, we will adapt
Bolivian 2 South African 2
the organization to better serve our
Brazilian 2 Spanish 4
Our total headcount now stands at 192, members and constituents and
British 12 Sri Lankan 1
compared to 180 the previous year. ensure the continued success of the
Canadian 5 Swedish 3
Reflecting our diverse, multistakeholder Industry Partnerships Programme.
Chinese 1 Swiss 39
focus, our people are drawn from 40 This will be done by integrating the
Danish 2 Thai 1
countries, with almost two out of three new Global Leadership Fellows, by
Dutch 6 Ukrainian 1
being women. Forum employees remain constituting a team uniquely serving
Egyptian 1 Total 192
the most highly skilled in the sector, with the Industry Partners, and by merging
Ethiopian 1
70% being graduates and 8% holding a our regional efforts with our efforts to
Finnish 1
PhD. Their learning and experience is serve our members. French 26
complemented by their youth, with German 14 Age group Numbers*
their median age being around 35- Hungarian 1 20 to 24 6
years-old. Indian 6 25 to 29 39
Iranian 2 30 to 34 52
One of the year’s important human Irish 1 35 to 39 36
resources developments was the launch Italian 14 40 to 44 21
of the Forum’s Global Leadership Lebanese 3 45 to 49 13
Programme. Set to welcome its first Malagasy 1 50 to 54 5

www.weforum.org
intake of Fellows in September 2005, Mexican 1 55 to 59 11
the programme received over 1,700 Moroccan 3 60 to 62 3
applications from 138 countries and 120 New Zealander 1 63 to 65 4
of the most promising candidates were Norwegian 1 65 or older 2
interviewed in July. Pakistani 1 Grand total 192

*As of 30 June 2005.

30 31
WR0070_ARA_32-33_ok.qxd 9/1/05 10:58 AM Page 32
Sharing knowledge
Sharing knowledge
Information technology and
knowledge management
Harnessing the power of technology in
collaboration with our Technology
Partners is fundamental to fulfiling the
World Economic Forum’s mission. It
furthers our aims and objectives by
improving our internal business functions;
enhancing communications between our
communities; fostering links with key
constituencies, including the public; and
creating world-class meetings.
Innovative technology again enhanced the
Annual Meeting, as participants were able
to ‘test-drive’ a range of new IT services
first-hand. Among other innovations,
participants benefited from:
• Electronic voting during the first global
‘town hall’
• An advanced version of the
KnowledgeConcierge service, which is
part of our Cyber Network Centre. This
updated device delivers a ‘state-of-the-
debate’ essay on each session in the
Annual Meeting. Via a portable wireless
tablet PC, participants were able to
access any of these essays, from
anywhere in the venue. Via
KnowledgeConcierge, we also
published each essay on the public
section of the Forum’s website, which
also carried live webcasts along with
video and written summaries of each
session. This move was in line with our
drive to share information with the
widest possible audience
• An upgraded Davos Companion,
incorporating a wireless, handheld iPAQ
designed to deliver information specific
to the personal requirements of each
individual participant
• Smart cards to access the personalized
navigation systems on the electronic
information kiosks
• Quotes from each session broadcast on
32
a network of 15 LCD screens. Most
extracts appeared on screen before the
session in question had concluded
After the Annual Meeting, participants
donated 450 Davos Companions to three
Social Entrepreneur organizations: India’s
Aravind Eye Care System, Afghanistan’s
BRAC and the international TechnoServe
organization. Another 100 devices were
donated to the World Health Organization
and UNICEF as part of the Asian tsunami
relief appeal.
At its headquarters, the Forum took an
important step towards web-enabling its
customer relationship management (CRM)
system. This involved combining it with
the Forum’s finance system to streamline
business processes, specifically those
applying to member management and
meeting registration.
Another important initiative involved
re-engineering the electronic workplace
used by employees. They were migrated
to a more flexible electronic workplace,
incorporating an enhanced operating
system and more robust security tools.
In the run-up to the Annual Meeting, we
launched My Agenda on
www.weforum.org. This feature enables
participants to make best use of their
time at Davos by allowing them to
manage logistics online and organize
meetings in advance.
Communications
The communications team works to
further our mission by sharing insights and
information with all our stakeholders, from
Forum members to the general public.
The Forum’s commitment to transparency
and constructive, informed dialogue was
Israel's Michel Kichka watches fellow editorial cartoonist Patrick Oliphant, USA, drawing US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other American leaders
during the Annual Meeting 2005 workshop ‘Plotting a New Course for the Transatlantic Partnership’.
again made clear by the high number of
editors who actively participated in – rather
than just covered – our Annual Meeting
and regional summits. Overall, media
leaders, including a significant number of
eminent columnists and television news
anchors, made up one-fifth of participants.
A special programme for media leaders at
the Annual Meeting enabled senior
journalists to share experiences and
address the issues raised by new
technology and the constantly changing
ethical landscape in which they work.
We further increased awareness of the
Forum’s activities by achieving a
significant growth in coverage across a
broad range of media – most notably
television. There was a steep increase in
the number of international TV
broadcasters who attended the Annual
Meeting, reaching a global audience of
one billion people. The Forum continued
to reinforce its strong relationship with
BBC World, as coverage of debates was
transmitted to a worldwide audience of
over 250 million people. Media
participants at the Annual Meeting
included 10 of the world’s leading editorial
cartoonists from Israel, Japan, Kenya,
Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa,
Switzerland and the US. Cartoonists also
added their wit and insight to meetings in
Jordan, Singapore and South Africa.
Looking ahead, we will reinforce efforts to
further expand coverage and analysis of
the Forum’s meetings. At the same time,
we recognize the importance of keeping
our initiatives’ profile consistently high
between headline events. This inspired a
successful campaign to promote a series
of important Forum publications, including
The Global Competitiveness Report,
The Global Information Technology Report
and The Gender Gap Report.
Our relationship with opinion research
company Gallup International remains
important to the Forum, playing an
instrumental role in shaping the Annual
Meeting agenda through the ‘town
hall’ programme.
Throughout the year, there was a
concerted effort to enhance editorial and
reporting standards on the Forum’s
website, www.weforum.org. The
introduction of searchable topic essays,
session summaries, webcasts, photo
galleries and real-time reporting helped
present content more incisively.
A strong combination of increasingly
sophisticated technology and more
engaging content helped attract
significantly higher volumes of traffic to
the site. Traffic to the members’ portal
rose by 15%, while traffic to the public
site increased by 35%. Statistics also
show that visitors to the public site are
staying longer and reading content in
more depth. In April alone, the average
time per visit increased by 270%
compared with the previous year.
Partnerships
The World Economic Forum seeks
to forge partnerships with institutions
that share its vision and values. It has
NGO consultative status with the
Economic and Social Council of the
United Nations. It works closely with
civil society organizations, think-tanks,
governmental institutions, and
foundations such as the United Nations,
the Prince Of Wales International
Business Leaders Forum, the World
Business Council for Sustainable
Development, AccountAbility,
SustainAbility, the UN Foundation, the
International Finance Corporation, the
Rockefeller Foundation, the Swiss
Agency for Development and
Cooperation, the Centre for International
Governance Innovation, Transparency
International and the
www.weforum.org
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
33
WR0070_ARA_34-35_ok.qxd 9/1/05 10:59 AM Page 34

Our financial results

Total income 2000-2004

figures in Swiss francs

Our financial results 2000/2001 63,806,052

2001/2002 72,195,453
2002/2003 66,454,727
Our financial results contributions or subsidies that are
2003/2004 74,058,911
In 2004/2005, we achieved strong consistent with its purpose of ‘integrating
financial results as income from all our leaders from business, politics and 2004/2005 83,336,839
initiatives and activities continued to grow. society at large into a community for
We did not touch our reserve funds global action committed to improving the
during the year, despite investing a state of the world and the well-being and
significant sum into the launch of our prosperity of human society’.
Industry Partnerships Programme. Key figures
The World Economic Forum makes no
Among the most notable revenue drivers payments to political personalities, parties
was the growing number of Forum or other organizations and avoids Year 2000/2001 2001/2002 2002/2003 2003/2004 2004/2005
members choosing to become strategic involvement in national politics.
partners. In total, this trend added Total income* 63,806,052 72,195,453 66,454,727 74,058,911 83,336,839
Sfr.1,253,336 to our reserves. This figure Auditors out of which
was also due to cost efficiencies we The World Economic Forum’s members’ fees 23,588,125 24,965,367 25,530,325 25,137,257 26,546,382
achieved during the year. financial results are audited by participation fees 26,972,981 21,465,398 20,543,108 20,824,213
PricewaterhouseCoopers, who examine partnership 18,946,940 17,390,452 24,552,385 31,035,927
In finance, as throughout our organization, the balance sheet and accounts. The
we aim for excellence. During the year, annual report, as well as all institutional
we took steps to make our approach documents, are submitted to the Swiss Total expenditure 63,556,294 69,077,008 66,454,522 72,307,790 82,083,503
compliant with US GAAP, pursued best Federal Government, which in law acts as out of which
personnel costs 27,097,659 26,584,768 29,620,236 35,723,308
practice across our processes and the supervisory body for the Foundation.
office costs 10,642,445 8,360,352 9,044,738 9,253,213
improved our internal reporting methods.
activity-related costs 31,336,904 31,509,401 33,642,815 37,106,982

Financial policy
The World Economic Forum’s financial
Surplus to be
policy states that membership fees
added to the
in principle should cover operational
Foundation capital 249,759 3,118,445 205 1,751,121 1,253,336
costs, that events are funded through
cost contributions and that projects
are supported by income from
Foundation capital 8,996,308 12,114,753 12,114,958 13,866,079 15,119,415
partnership contracts.
The Forum may accept grants,
donations, legacies and other
Total staff
Full time 125 139 130 134 162
out of which seconded
by Forum members 4 4 5 5
Part time 22 28 28 28 30

www.weforum.org
* all key figures in Swiss francs

34 35
WR0070_ARA_36-37_ok.qxd 9/1/05 10:59 AM Page 36
Our mission and values
Our mission and values
The World Economic Forum is an
independent international organization
committed to improving the state of
the world by engaging leaders in
partnerships to shape global, regional
and industry agendas.
Incorporated by Professor Klaus Schwab
as a foundation in 1971, and based in
Geneva, Switzerland, the World
Economic Forum is impartial and not-for-
profit; it is tied to no political, partisan or
national interests.
Our culture combines the best elements
of entrepreneurship with those of
public service. Thus, our motto is
‘entrepreneurship in the global
public interest’.
We cultivate public trust by never
compromising our institutional integrity.
We constantly strive to win the respect of
our members and constituents by
ensuring everything we undertake is ‘first
in class’. We can serve our communities
best by making ourselves a role model
for a highly interactive, open and fast
learning community.
Our mission is best realized through
activities which promote economic and
social development. We believe that
economic progress without social
development is not sustainable, while
social development without economic
progress is not feasible.
In addition to convening world leaders,
the Forum aims to involve them in living
communities of common interest and
purpose. The Forum ensures substance
in the form of strategic insights and,
36
where relevant, platforms for joint action.
To carry out its mission, the World
Economic Forum has developed an
integrated value chain by involving world
leaders in communities, inspiring them
with strategic insights and enabling them
through initiatives.
Our vision for the World Economic Forum
is threefold. To be:
• The foremost organization which builds
and energizes leading global communities
• The creative force shaping global,
regional and industry strategies
for its communities
• The catalyst of choice for its communities
when undertaking global initiatives to
improve the state of the world
The World Economic Forum enjoys unique
global positioning by recognizing and
responding to two developments:
• The world’s key challenges cannot be
met by governments, business or civil
society alone
• In a world characterized by complexity,
fragility and ever-greater synchronicity,
strategic insights cannot be passively
acquired. They are best developed
through continuous interaction with peers
and with the most knowledgeable people
in the field (learning communities)
www.weforum.org
For more information see
www. weforum.org
Saadia Zahidi, Forum economist and co-author of Women’s Empowerment: Measuring the Global Gender Gap, at the report’s London launch, with leading UK barrister Cherie Blair QC.
37
 Designed and edited by Wardour Communications

Contact details:

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Telephone +41 (0)22 869 1212

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© World Economic Forum 2005