The world in 2019 is more intertwined and complex than ever before. While interconnections have brought stability in past decades, tightly wound systems are becoming more vulnerable. Across every realm – cyber, environmental, economic, geopolitical, societal – we are seeing fraying threads in the fabric that cloaks society. The World Economic Forum’s global risks work serves to signal which threads, when pulled, could lead to an unraveling of entire systems.

The Regional Risks for Doing Business report offers a business perspective on the impact of global risks and illustrates how they are experienced differently in each region. In today’s fraught geopolitical context, regional coordination is increasingly important. We publish this report with the hope that it will help shape each region’s agenda vis-à-vis the global risks landscape, moving the needle for regions aiming to play an increasingly pivotal role in the years ahead.