Jasmine Whitbread writes from Davos 2008
The annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos brings together many of the world's most powerful people. Jasmine Whitbread, our Chief Executive, writes from Davos.
Friday 25 January 2008
A series of airport lounges
January 23, 2008
My children wouldn't be impressed so far. When I put my son to bed the night before I left for my first visit to Davos I struggled to explain where I was going. "It's a ski resort with the world's leaders milling about," I said. Felix, however, was unperturbed: "Oh, a bit like the G8...?". He gets it that Save the Children needs to influence and work with global leaders if we're serious about creating dramatic change for the world's most vulnerable children, but he pushes me. "So what decisions are going to be made then?"
Today, I chuckle to myself as I find myself in portacabins and dodgy car-park-like stairwells getting into the hallowed halls of Davos congress. It's all incredibly mundane. Suddenly though, a helicopter descends, deafening everyone; a world leader has arrived, no doubt.
Inside it's a bit like a series of airport lounges - people sitting, standing, chatting, snacking and mostly obsessing with their PDAs. Opposite me is a woman, calmly knitting. All of a sudden, a film crew swoops in, framing an eminent CEO as he strides up to a colleague. He is ebullient - they high-five and backslap. They fade out again just as quickly.
Having used the internal messaging system to set up a load of meetings (its amazing who you can coax into a quick chat - chairmen of FTSE 50 companies it might take years to set up a meeting with in London) I head off to an informal session with the other heads of aid and development agencies here.
Condoleezza Rice and the curate's egg
January 23, 2008
There is an unseemly scramble to get into the opening plenary session - it's funny to see global leaders subtly pushing and shoving as if they were trying to get on the London Underground.
Inside, we are treated to a pretty impressive line up that sets a distinctly foreign-policy dominated agenda. All the corridor talk of the economy is swept away by a series of big picture issues (terrorism, climate change, democracy-building, the Middle East) set out by the likes of President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Tony Blair and Henry Kissinger, amongst others.
Rice delivers a rousing speech about principles and vision - though she acknowledges that the audience may be sceptical hearing this from 'an American', as she put it. For my tastes, her talk is like the curate's egg - good in parts.
She talks passionately about education, and women's empowerment being the single most critical element in development and gets a surprising round of applause for this. (I place a bet this is a theme that will develop through the conference.)
She also puts on the table the fact that several developing countries are democracies and yet have not been able to deliver for their people. For me, the shocking rates of child malnutrition in Tanzania come to mind - there is simply no excuse for the rich world not to do more to prevent this.
It is left to Wang Jianzhou, CEO of China Mobile Communications Corp to insist on climate change and its human dimensions. He said people contribute to it, suffer from it, and (pointedly I think) must act together on it.
There is so much on the table now and that's not including all the other sessions today and to come. It will be interesting to see what emerge as the dominant themes, and, dare I say, conclusions.
Why are only 17% of Davos delegates women?
January 23, 2008
After just a few hours sleep, I'm again making my way down snowy streets, for what turns out to be a bracing early morning session on women and inclusive growth. Cherie Booth listens attentively over a quick breakfast and then sets a challenging tone for the panel: Why is this a side issue at Davos and why are only 17 per cent of delegates women?
Peter Sands, the CEO of Standard Chartered Bank, talks with great credibility about how this issue has emerged as central through the different strands of their work - from HIV to microfinance. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria's ex finance minister, then throws out a well-timed challenge: what is going to be different after this year's Davos? She's obviously been in this discussion before. An accomplished economist, she's wonderfully rooted in the realities of African women. She wonders out loud (as I have been worrying myself) what an economic downturn and increased food prices will mean for the poorest of the poor - mothers and children displaced in Chad for example.
The trouble is, even in this small room, everyone can fall into pushing their particular angle on the women's question and it can sound confusing to the private sector. Is it girls' education that will make the difference? Or women's economic empowerment? Or protection from violence? Or more places round the boardtable? Of course it's all needed, but with more integration, learning and accountability.
I think we need a relatively simple framework that can unpack 'women's empowerment', setting out what's needed and where and how different actors can and must do more. I'd like to see more collaboration to develop this and get it on the main stage next year.
The philanthropy session I'm now sittting in is certainly not in danger of being a side issue - not with a panel packed with people who have a billion dollars to give away. I am glad I've just appointed a Director of Philanthropy and Partnerships at Save the Children. There is huge opportunity here - and it's not just about the money, but about a very healthy challenging of the status quo in the aid and development sector. This is where the conference theme 'innovative collaboration' really comes to life.
