Davos 2025 has had a distinct energy, as its opening day, January 20th, coincided with the 47th U.S. presidential inauguration, which cast a long shadow over the World Economic Forum by moving the center of gravity for the power elite from Davos to Washington.
The implications came in two forms.
First, from a logistical point of view, many of the global CEOs who reign over Davos were not present – they were in Washington, D.C. to participate in the inauguration. This took some of the wind out of WEF’s sails. With AI being such a key theme at the conference, the AI gods were absent; they were at the White House for President Trump’s announcement of the $500 billion Stargate AI initiative funded by the major tech titans.
Second, with Trump issuing a record number of executive orders that are upending decades of domestic and foreign policies, it was hard for WEF’s global thought leaders to calibrate their remarks on the future of just about everything, from global trade, which is impacted by new tariff policies coming out of Washington, to reforming sovereign regimes who can be emboldened by Western signals that may affirm some elements of authoritarianism. Thus, many conversations were hedged with phrases like, “depending on which way the U.S. goes….”
Irrespective of the competition for attention between Davos and Washington, Africa’s economic priorities at WEF remain the same. First and foremost is how to create economic opportunities for a population of over one billion people who live in some of the poorest countries on the planet? Second, and related to the first priority, is how does Africa move from being a source of raw materials to a value added producer in the global economy?
The very premise of Davos is to convene public, private and civil society leaders from around the globe to address the world’s most pressing economic and societal issues. The Davos globalist mindset is one that acknowledges the interconnectedness of all nations, and thereby seeks to develop common solutions to common problems. Africa’s economic challenges do not exist in a vacuum, and are highly correlated with the global economy.
We invite you to watch the nine panels and speeches we have curated for you so that you may develop your own views on what happened at Davos and its importance to Africa. South African President Ramaphosa’s speech, a panel on digital inclusion featuring Zimbabwean billionaire Strive Masiyiwa and African-American billionaire Robert Smith, a session on Africa’s economy featuring the head of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and the head of the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat, a discussion on climate trade by the World Trade Organization Head Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, a discussion on how artists showcase social injustice, and the speech delivered to Davos by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Special Address by Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa
Africa’s Economy: Young and Fast
Defending Earth’s Largest Lung
Squaring the Climate-Trade Circle
Artist’s Path Out of Injustice
Special Address and Dialogue with Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America