Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - Meetings of the World Economic Forum on the Middle East and North Africa(WEF) under will start Saturday morning at the King Hussein Bin Talal Convention Center at the shores of the Dead Sea under the theme "Building New Platforms of Cooperation".

His Majesty King Abdullah, in the presence of their Majesties King Abdullah and Queen Rania and HRH Crown Prince Hussein, will inaugurate the 10th WEF meeting to be held in Jordan and the 17th in the region, by delivering a speech addressing major issues in the region.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, will also deliver speeches at the opening session. More than 1,000 officials, business leaders, civil society, faith and academia from across the world will take part in the forum to discuss a number of issues including climate change, peace and reconciliation, youth unemployment and the fourth industrial revolution, among other topics.

The event will focus on four transformational imperatives, shaping a new economic and social model for the region, environmental stewardship in the Arab world, finding common ground in a multi-conceptual world and the fourth industrial revolution in the Arab world.

Other public figures attending the meeting are Muhammadu Buhari, President of Nigeria, Chairman of the Executive Committee, Palestine Liberation Organization; Armen Sarkissian, President of Armenia, Emine Erdogan, First Lady of Turkey, Abdullah Abdullah, Chief Executive of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan; Khalid Al-Falih, Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources of Saudi Arabia, Omar Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence of the United Arab Emirates, Yusuf Bin Alawi Bin Abdullah, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Oman, Ghassan Hasbani, Deputy Prime Minister of Lebanon; and Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bahrain.

For the second time, the WEF is partnering with the Bahrain Economic Development Board to bring 100 Arab start-ups to the meeting, under an initiative that aims to further integrate entrepreneurs into a national and regional dialogue on pressing challenges.

Around 17 countries, covering numerous sectors including finance, energy, health, environment, media and education will take part in the event.

During their 32 sessions, participants at the forum will focus on four transformational imperatives; shaping a new economic and social model for the region, environmental stewardship in the Arab world, finding common ground in a multi-conceptual world and the fourth industrial revolution in the Arab world.

The "Humanitarian Investing Initiative", launched at the forum’s annual meeting in Davos, will also showcase innovative approaches to investing systemic issues to respond to the long-term challenges of protracted humanitarian crises. Other sessions will feature solution-based, forward-looking dialogues on issues of healthcare, energy, water, gender equality, the future of jobs, cybersecurity and more.

Participants will also focus on globalization, the role of technology in confronting corruption, shaping future of tourism in Jordan, peace and conflict in the region, new energy in the Middle East, geopolitical prospects as well as developments 5th generation communications.

Today's meetings will also shed light on topics of crucial importance for the region, including water challenges, the role of women in economic development, the importance of data, future of smart cities, redistribution of responsibilities and tasks in the region, future of Islamic banking, solid- waste management , political solutions and reconstruction as well as financial inclusion policies.

The two-day meeting, held in partnership with the King Abdullah II Fund for Development (KAFD), offers an international platform to highlight the priorities and plans of Jordan and the region, in the fields of development, energy, technology applications and natural resource management.