CIVICUS

FROM THE DESK OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

Reflections from the World Economic Forum, Davos, Switzerland
By Kumi Naidoo, CIVICUS Secretary-General

Issued Date: 06 February 2008

Dear Friends and Colleagues,

I hope the New Year is going well for you in the important work you are doing struggling for a just world. As you might have seen through the news media and the addition to our last issue of e-CIVICUS 373, the World Economic Forum took place in the last week of January. The number of NGO participants has reduced recently as there are more paying delegates from the business sector. This year, even the World Social Forum did not hold one global meeting, instead opting for a global day of mobilisation on 26 January.

I travelled to Zurich, Switzerland where I was privileged to join with the World Social Forum Human Rights and Human Dignity Caucus. Some twenty human rights activists from different parts of the world arrived at Davos and participated in a press conference calling on the World Economic Forum to focus more on human rights and the environment. The theme of this year’s WEF was The Power of Collaborative Innovation.

There, of course, remain diverse views on the value of civil society organisations participating in the World Economic Forum. Some hold the view that the WEF is part of the problem and could never be part of the solution. Others take the view that while the WEF has a legitimacy deficit, the world’s economy is far too important to leave to business people alone. There is no doubt in my mind that the combined pressure of the World Social Forum and the efforts of trade unionists, NGOs and religious leaders participating in the WEF has succeeded in persuading its leadership to focus on issues important to us, such as climate change and poverty.

However, simply getting an issue such as climate change onto the agenda does not mean that the issues are dealt with in the way that civil society would like. For example, Gerd Leipold, the Executive Director of Greenpeace, noted last year that the issue of climate change, even though it was voted the main challenge facing the world, was dealt with in a superficial manner and sometimes appeared to be focused disproportionately on the business opportunities climate change presents.

I participated this year in the BBC World Debate which focused on the state of the world economy and in particular the concerns regarding the current global slowdown.

The panel included the current Finance Minister of India, John Snow, who held the same position for three years in the current Bush Administration, and one of China’s most senior leaders, amongst other panellists. Not being an economist, I was quite nervous. However, I argued that the majority of the people in the world have been suffering under an effective recession and economic uncertainty. I argued that we need to ensure that civil society does not simply address the current economic uncertainties with band aids such as economic stimulus packages that drive up consumption in the rich countries when what is desperately needed is a need to control overconsumption. You can listen to the debate at the website below and view it on BBC World - (www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/documentaries/2008/01/080125_davosdebate.shtml).

I also participated in a panel on Global Governance together with the heads of the World Bank, World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the United Nations Development Programme. I argued that the system of global governance is stuck in the geopolitics of 1945 when the UN, World Bank and IMF were formed, and is still too focused on the role of the nation state with little regard for space for civil society. I also argued that it was a major contradiction for institutions such as the World Bank and IMF to preach good governance on the one hand, but on the other hand the governance of these institutions continues to suffer from a democratic deficit themselves; which contributes to three further deficits: coherence (with national governments having to service a multitude of global commitments - finance ministers focused on the World Bank and IMF, trade ministers on the WTO, Foreign Ministers on the UN and so on), compliance (where governments make grand commitments at the global summits and do not implement these) and legitimacy (most citizens in the world feel alienated from these institutions and largely do not trust them or the transparency with which national governments engage with global governance institutions. You can watch this session on www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRiqk2DeQpI.

My favourite event at Davos over the years has been the annual CIVICUS-convened civil society dinner. This brings together trade unionists, NGOs and religious leaders. This year we had about 50 participants; the vibe and sense of solidarity we shared with each other was positive. We also used the opportunity to declare our support for THE ELDERS’ “Every Human Has Rights” Campaign (www.everyhumanhasrights.org). This event is the only space at the WEF where civil society participants can come together and strategise. We also use this as an opportunity to agree on positions to take to the WEF management. This year, as in every previous year, we raised our concerns about the glaring gender balance deficit, both in terms of content and participation.

On Saturday 26 January, the global day of mobilisation of the World Social Forum, I joined an event organised in Davos and connected by telephone to various other events happening around the world. I shared with the participants the discussions and debates taking place within the WEF and answered questions about the global governance discussion mentioned above. What the gathering lacked in numbers was more than compensated for by the enthusiasm, courage and honesty shown by the 100 or so participants who took part.

I am deeply respectful of the fact that some of you reading this column will say that we wish CIVICUS did not go to the World Economic Forum. However, I believe strongly that engagement by civil society with a broad array of social forces is critically important. If we are confident about our perspectives and approaches to addressing some of the major issues of our time, then we need to take our views and dreams to any forum and believe in our ability to shift the terms of the discourse, to shift some people of power towards our positions and, ultimately, to win the argument.

Next year the World Social Forum will be held in the Amazon region of Brazil around the time of the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum. CIVICUS will continue to participate in both these Forums with different goals. We participate in the WSF in larger numbers since we want to promote the role of civil society in addressing global problems and, while we may not necessarily agree with every sentiment and participant at the WSF, by and large it is a phenomenal effort with only a fraction of the resources available to the WEF. We will also continue to try to influence the discussions and debates at the WEF since the struggle to defend civil society’s public role must be taken to even unlikely places to ensure that every site of convening must be considered as a site of struggle for human rights, justice and peace.

Warmest regards,

Kumi

To send you comments, suggestions or contributions of articles, e-mail editor@civicus.org.

Below you will find all previous columns published.

• Civil societyheroes lanuish in prison for over two years

• Civil society seeking collective reponses for the year 2008

• A time for peace, reflections and rededication

• 10 December - Human Rights Day

• International Volunteer Day: A Day for recognition and reflection

• The crossroads at Bali -- Choosing our destiny

• 16 Days of nActivism against Gender Violence

• Civil society under siege in Pakistan

• Aid must be more effective...and more accountable too

• Participation will be the focus of the 8th CIVICUS World Assembly

• Islam: The New Fascism?

• Standing Up for the People of Burma

• Closing the gap between volunteering and social activism