President skips WEF amid global turmoil

Finance minister Enoch Godongwana will lead South Africa’s delegation to the World Economic Forum in Davos this week, but he is expected to struggle to get his message heard at a meeting that will be overshadowed by geopolitical bedlam.

Godongwana’s entourage will have its work cut out against the background of protests in Iran, the US abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and President Donald Trump’s threats to annex Greenland.

These issues, along with the turmoil caused by Trump’s trade wars, are likely to dominate the gathering in Switzerland.

William Baloyi, spokesperson at the government communication & information system, said Godongwana will lead the South African delegation on behalf of President Cyril Ramaphosa. Asked why Ramaphosa was giving the WEF a miss this year, his spokesperson Vincent Magwenya cited “scheduling priorities”.

Godongwana will be joined by the minister of trade, industry & competition, Parks Tau; the minister of electricity and energy, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa; the minister of international relations & co-operation, Ronald Lamola; the minister of transport, Barbara Creecy; minister of tourism Patricia De Lille; and the minister of small business development, Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams.

At the WEF last year, Ramaphosa called for collaboration in preparing global labour markets for changes in the “intelligent age” and set the tone for the G20 summit in Johannesburg.

International forums, like the WEF do not have the status that they used to have. The world is not what it used to be

—  Economist Dawie Roodt

It is not the first time that Ramaphosa has skipped the WEF. In 2020, he had more pressing issues at home, including meetings with the National Electricity Crisis Committee on load-shedding. The following year he delivered a virtual speech, and in 2023 the electricity supply crisis again forced him to remain in South Africa.

This year Transnet officials will join the South African delegation, including group CEO Michelle Phillips, COO Solly Letsoalo, CFO Nosipho Maphumulo and acting general manager for security and forensics Shawn Johnson. Eskom will also send representatives.

Dawie Roodt, economist at Efficient Group, said rapidly changing global dynamics meant the WEF was not as significant an event as in the past.

“International forums, like the WEF… do not have the status that they used to have. In the past, these organisations were sort of a platform where various role players could really discuss [issues], and whatever was discussed there carried some weight.

“But the reality is that the world is not what it used to be, and even discussions… are not what they used to be, and they can be changed.”

The WEF’s Global Risks Report 2026, released on Wednesday, paints an ominous picture. “Uncertainty is the defining theme of the global risks outlook in 2026,” it said. “Respondents [in the risks perception survey] viewed both the short- and long-term global outlook negatively, with 50% of respondents anticipating either a turbulent or stormy outlook over the next two years, deteriorating to 57% of respondents over the next 10 years.”

Among the issues that were “top of mind” for respondents were geoeconomic conflict and the spread of disinformation.

Andrew George, a senior executive at the Marsh consultancy, which is a “strategic partner” of the WEF, said this year’s meeting will be characterised by a rise in divided societies, which are being driven closer to the brink of social instability amid increased conflict globally.

“Deepening divisions are at the centre of the societal risks we all now face, from social fragmentation and inequality to declining health and wellbeing. Despite the growing severity of these global risks, major governments are moving away from many established frameworks designed to tackle our shared challenges.”

Alison Martin, CEO of a division of Zurich Insurance — another WEF strategic partner — said business leaders in major economies were deeply worried about pensions and public health.

“It’s striking that societal risks — like declining health, lack of public infrastructure and social protections — barely register in the 10-year risk outlook, even though their effects are already reshaping our world. If we don’t act with urgency and collaboration, we risk ignoring the very threats that could define our future.”

Neville Matjie, CEO of Brand South Africa, said: “We are coming to Davos to demonstrate tangible progress. The reforms are real. The progress is measurable. And the opportunities are substantial.”

He said the South African delegation would include executives of FirstRand Group, Rand Merchant Bank, the Development Bank of Southern Africa, Naspers-Prosus, Old Mutual, Telkom, South African Breweries and the Industrial Development Corporation.