Fon Mathuros, Head of Media, Public Engagement, Tel.: +41 22 869 1403, Email: fma@weforum.org
Geneva, Switzerland, 3 August 2016 – The World Economic Forum, together with its Indian partner for more than three decades, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), will host this year’s India Economic Summit in Delhi from 6 to 7 October. Convening under the theme, Fostering an Inclusive India through Digital Transformation, the summit will welcome over 500 participants from business, politics, academia, civil society, international organizations, arts and culture, media and members of the Forum’s communities, including Social Entrepreneurs, Global Shapers and Young Global Leaders.
“This year’s summit comes at an important juncture as India is the fastest-growing G20 economy just as the world is entering the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” said Viraj Mehta, Head of India and South Asia at the World Economic Forum. “This means India has an opportunity to transform the lives of its citizens. We look forward to continue working with our multistakeholder India community to identify the priority issues, discuss ways to address them and work on the ground to generate impact.”
“We are truly delighted to be partnering with the World Economic Forum once again to host this year’s edition of the India Economic Summit especially as it focuses on such a crucial topic,” said Chandrajit Banerjee, Director-General of the CII. “India’s economy is widely expected to grow at around 8% in the medium term. Identifying the right policies so that we sustain this growth rate for a generation would be key to achieving the development expectations of our country.”
To create meaningful dialogue and debate, this year’s programme will feature innovative formats that aim to generate insight, spark inspiration and drive impact. The three key pillars of the programme are:
- Mastering the Fourth Industrial Revolution – How can India become an innovation-driven manufacturing hub? What are the skills needed, the investment in digital infrastructure, and what will be the national policy to support this technological development?
- Driving Sustainable and Equitable Growth – How can India ensure food and nutrition security for its citizens? How to preserve the country’s diverse ecosystems while there is a need to drive growth in various areas?
- Improving the Ease of Doing Business – How can cooperative federalism ensure streamlined and expedited procedures at federal and state levels? How can the public-private partnership model help meet the vast infrastructure needs and address the investment deficit?
The Co-Chairs of this year’s India Economic Summit are: Johan C. Aurik, Global Managing Partner and Chairman of the Board, A.T. Kearney, USA; Gita Gopinath, Professor of Economics, Harvard University, USA; Amitabh Kant, Chief Executive Officer, National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog, India; John Rice, Vice-Chairman, GE, USA; and Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Chief Executive Officer, One97 Communications, India.
Media accreditation is now open for members of the media. Journalists who wish to cover the meeting must apply online by Friday 16 September at www.weforummedia.org. The number of accreditations issued will be strictly limited; late or on-site requests will not be accommodated.
Notes to Editors:
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