Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to lead Karnataka delegation to WEF at Davos from January 15

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will lead a 15-member delegation of Karnataka for the 54th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will lead a 15-member delegation of Karnataka for the 54th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) to be held in Davos in Switzerland which is scheduled from January 15 to January 19, 2024, for attracting investment in various sectors in the State.

The delegation is expected to woo industrialists from across the globe for investment on key sectors such as semiconductors, aerospace, defence, precision manufacturing, electronics. It is expected to hold talks with Satya Narayana Nadella, chairman and CEO of Microsoft, and other leading honchos of IT and manufacturing giants, official sources told The Hindu on Saturday.

The Chief Minister would be accompanied by Major Industries Minister M B Patil and IT/BT and RDPR Minister Priyank Kharge. Senior IAS officer and Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister L.K. Atheeq, principal secretaries and secretaries of industry and IT/BT departments would be part of the delegation.

The State will set up a pavilion at Davos for holding dialogues with leading industrialists, entrepreneurs, and Ministers of various nations. It is said that the government has entered into an agreement with a leading media house for setting up the pavilion and publicity.

The delegation is expected to follow-up the discussions held with businessmen during the tour of Mr Patil to the U.S. in September-October, 2023. After the U.S. tour, Mr Patil and Mr Kharge said that several American companies have expressed interest to invest around ₹25,000 crore in Karnataka.

Union Commerce and Industries Minister Piyush Goyal will lead the team from India at the WEF. Representatives of over 100 governments, all major international organisations, civil society leaders, experts, youth representatives and social entrepreneurs would participate in the five-day summit.

The summit this year is largely focused on four key themes: achieving security and cooperation in a fractured world, creating growth and jobs, Artificial Intelligence as a driving force for the economy and society, and a long-term strategy for climate, nature and energy.