Top international experts to converge in Dubai for World Economic Forum's 'Summit on Global Agenda'

To be held from 7-9 of November at Madinat Jumeirah, the summit will draw some of the world's most innovative thought leaders in academia, business, government and the society. The purpose of the Summit is for the Global Agenda Councils to share ideas and collaboratively address some of the most pressing issues on the global agenda.

The Summit on Global Agenda will address systemic financial risk and ways to sustain the development of financial markets worldwide. Measures to improve the global trade regime and global capital flows for reducing economic imbalances among various countries will also be explored as a key step for driving economic growth.

The Summit will also cover topics that include global trade regime and capital flows, trade facilitation and financial empowerment.

Mohamed Alabbar, Chairman of the Organizing Committee for the Summit, said:

"The government of Dubai is extremely proud to host this event that will offer a great networking opportunity for some of the most influential players in the global economy. More importantly, it will draw up tangible solutions for the current global financial crisis in a concentrated endeavor to revive the flagging economic landscape worldwide."

He added:
"Dubai and the UAE have registered robust year on year economic growth, and it is only logical for us to host an event as a country whose fundamentals are relatively stronger and are not currently vulnerable to systemic risk. Many economies of the world are in recession or expected to go into recession, while the economy of the UAE is expected to register a 6% annual economic growth in 2008 according to latest IMF estimates."

Participants at this year's summit will include renowned economists such as Raymond Fishman, Professor of Economics and Finance, Columbia Business School; Paul M. Romer, Professor of Economics at Stanford Graduate Business School; and Kristin J Forbes, Professor of Economics at MIT-Sloan School of Management. Representatives of official bodies such as John Gieve, Deputy Governor of Bank of England; Uri Dadush, Director International Trade Department at the World Bank, and Richard Eglin, Director Trade and Finance Division at the World Trade Organization (WTO) will also lend their perspectives to the discussion.

The summit will also be attended by high ranking executives from major global corporations such as Lewis B. Kaden, Vice Chairman of Citigroup; Domenico Giovanni, Vice Chairman Europe at Morgan Stanley; Manvinder S. Banga President, Foods, Home and Personal Care at Unilever, and Mohammed A. El-Erian Managing Director, Co-Chief Executive Officer of Pacific Investment Management Company.