The World Government Summit (WGS) reaffirmed that facing the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak requires cementing the principles of partnership and employing modern technology to explore and build on new opportunities. In line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to promote global cooperation, concerted efforts between governments for the good of humankind, and build a better future for humanity.
These were the key takeaways of two recent webinars, as part of the online series organized by the World Government Summit Foundation until June 26. The series aims to enhance the role of governments in responding to the new frontiers set by the novel Coronavirus and shape the future of governments in the post-coronavirus era by analyzing the latest developments and effects of the virus on governments worldwide.
The online series, “COVID-19 & Government”, discuss the global impact of COVID-19 on vital economic sectors and the future of government beyond this pandemic, hosting 30 global speakers, experts, and government leaders. It also focuses on new global trends imposed by the acceleration of technological progress and the changes brought about by the pandemic, which helps governments overcome the crisis and create a better future.
COVID-19: How Can We Harness Technology to Overcome Pandemics?
Dr. Peter H. Diamandis, Executive Chairman of the XPRIZE Foundation, spoke about the importance of collaboration between sectors, institutions and governments to face the coronavirus crisis, in a webinar titled “COVID-19: How Can We Harness Technology to Overcome Pandemics?”, moderated by Saqr Binghaleb, Director of the UAE Government’s Artificial Intelligence Office. Dr Diamandis He said: “The human race has never had a singular enemy like this before, and for the first time ever, every nation is realizing that this particular virus is of concern. Hence, collaboration is key. We’ve seen somewhere about 100 million and 200 million physicians, scientists, nurses, engineers, and technologists focusing on how to solve this problem.”
Dr Diamandis added: “Dealing with rapid change requires agility and adaptability. So, governments, companies, families, and individuals who are most open to change, are the ones who are going to survive and thrive the most during this time. It really is creating a culture of a positive mindset and a culture of adaptability. Yes, there are many problems, but we are more positioned as scientists and engineers than ever before to solve problems. As we solve problems, we create new industries and new capabilities, and we move humanity forward.”
The global expert added that the sectors which will witness tremendous growth in the coming stage will go through four basic operations: digitization, dematerialization, demonetization, and democratization. He explained that experiential education will be the future of the education sector, and will be supported by virtual reality, augmented reality and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. This will transform our daily lives into a continuous learning experience, which requires preparing our children for this transformation by helping them explore their passions, motivate them to ask big questions, and train them to insist and persevere.
He added that the real challenge is we are still teaching our children the same way we taught them hundreds of years ago, which makes education an imperfect experience. After we got used to focusing on teaching them facts, it is now more important to train them to ask big questions.
Diamandis stressed that with enormous technological development, societies around the world will rely primarily on governments to ensure the security and safety of using this modern technology. He pointed out that, despite the massive turmoil caused by the pandemic, it unified people and brought them together in many areas, and that technological advances in the world have strengthened the ability of societies to face the spread of this epidemic.
COVID-19 has in fact accelerated by anywhere from two to four years a lot of this exponential change.
Dr Diamandis likened the COVID-19 global pandemic to the ‘asteroid impact’ which led to the extinction of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, adding that another ‘asteroid’ that had struck Planet Earth over the past decade was that of exponential technologies.
“The next asteroid to strike the planet is AI. It will be transformational,” he said.
Does COVID-19 Mean a New Global Order?
Dr. John Chipman, Director General and CEO at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), and Frederick Kempe, President and CEO at the Atlantic Council, outlined expected scenarios in light of global developments and concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, during a webinar titled “Does COVID-19 Mean a New Global Order?” The webinar also explored the global absence of the superpowers, and many questions about the world’s future, such as where it’s heading, and how governments will face the changing global landscape.
During the webinar, moderated by CNN’s Becky Anderson, Dr Chipman and Kempe focused on the importance of swift and decisive governmental decisions, which ensure that businesses resume as usual despite great uncertainty in the world’s future. They discussed multiple scenarios for the post-coronavirus period. They, too, stressed the importance of global cooperation, the shared responsibility to meet challenges, and building a better and more sustainable future for everyone.
