Get ready for an even more unbalanced post-pandemic world: WEF | News of Differences

The world, full of scars from COVID-19, is not prepared to take on more and more existential threats, a new report has warned.

The world is becoming increasingly unbalanced, and the divergence of the pandemic has exacerbated tensions, resentments and national responses to further complicate climate change, economic inequality and social instability, according to a new report.

2022 Global Risk Report (PDF) – The 17th edition of the World Economic Forum (WEF), released on Tuesday – warns of the economic recovery of coronavirus, many of which are based on the spread of vaccines, deepening divisions between nations and the international community. generally.

“The world has lived together for a long time, but we are not recovering together: 2022 begins with an unincorporated population and an irregular economic rebound that could split the global economy,” said Emilio Franco, head of global risks at WEF, Al Franco. Jazeera.

In the 52 poorest countries, where 20 percent of the world’s population lives, only 6% of the world’s population is vaccinated (compared to 69.9 percent in high-income nations), according to the WEF report.

“This is why our Global Risk Report warns that global divergence is a major risk; it will create tensions inside and outside, when societies and countries need to work together to regain confidence and build future resilience, ”added Franco.

In addition, inflation, supply chain disruptions, rising debt and protectionism are driving the world economy into turbulent waters. Added to this are the challenges posed by climate change, the growing threat of cyberattacks, mass migration, and the race for space exploration.

The emergence of a new variant of the coronavirus in late 2021 has confirmed what many economists fear: the global economic recovery is in shambles and any disruption could have far-reaching consequences.

By 2024, developing economies (excluding China) will see a 5.5 percent drop in projected gross domestic product (GDP) growth ahead of the pandemic, and advanced economies will exceed 0.9 percent, according to the WEF.

Restoring confidence and fostering cooperation between countries will be essential to meet the challenges and keep the nations of the world at bay, the WEF emphasizes.

Extreme poverty, climate transition and rapid digitization

The WEF report is based on information gathered by nearly 1,000 experts who asked them to reflect on the global response to the pandemic and how world leaders can cope with the challenges ahead. Eighty-five percent of those surveyed said they were concerned about where the world was going.

The report also takes into account the views of more than 12,000 country-level leaders in 124 nations who identified serious risks.

The erosion of social cohesion was classified as a major short-term threat in 31 countries, including Argentina, France, Germany, Mexico and South Africa from a group of 20 nations. An additional 51 million people are expected to live in extreme poverty compared to the previous pandemic trend, according to the WEF.

A disorderly transition to climate-friendly policies will alienate countries and create barriers between them. Leaving the carbon-intensive industries will lead to economic volatility and deepen unemployment, the WEF warned in its report.

The growing dependence on digital systems, which has grown dramatically during the pandemic, has changed the world forever. And the world is unprepared: by 2020, malware and ransomware attacks will increase by 358 percent and 435 percent, respectively.

One thing the pandemic has shown is that no country is safe from economic, environmental and social unrest. This is why governments need to prioritize investment in order to prepare for the challenges they face.

This, the WEF argues, means addressing large-scale policy challenges, building resilience to future public health and climate change, and encouraging greater private sector participation in the search for solutions.