MONITORING REPORT
World Economic Forum
in Davos, Switzerland
The annual World Economic Forum (WEF) will take place in Davos, Switzerland from 15 to 19 January and is expected to host several thousand attendees ranging from government delegations, major international organizations, over 1,000 influential global companies, media outlets, and civil society groups. The forum serves as an international platform for public-private cooperation on critical economic, social, and political issues. At the 2024 WEF key decision-makers are expected to address monetary policy as the new year brings hope of easing inflation. The US Federal Reserve, Bank of England and the European Central Bank in December all held interest rates steady at current raised levels. A sharp decline in inflation rates in recent weeks increases the likelihood of “soft landings” in 2024. That said, global growth is also expected to slow this year. Geopolitical dynamics, including protectionist trade policies, sanctions and regional conflicts, will continue to weigh on growth.
Due to the high-profile nature of the event, security will be heightened in Davos during the forum, with an increased police presence, road closures set up to control traffic and crowds, and access controls for those participating in the events. In previous years, the WEF has triggered protests by environmental activists and other interest groups in Davos and across other major cities, which could pose incidental security risks to nearby businesses. In 2023, Seerist recorded several unrest events in Davos and across cities in Pakistan in response to the WEF meetings.
Source: Seerist and Control Risks
Monitor Developments in Davos with Events AI
Verified events (VEs) are authenticated by a team of subject matter experts that identify, verify, and monitor events 24/7. Users can gain insights into civil unrest trends - such as protests that took place during the WEF in previous years across Switzerland and the perpetrators involved with Seerist’s well-tagged VE database - which includes records starting in 2008.
Since January 2009, Seerist has captured eight major unrest events associated with the WEF in Switzerland (featured on the map to the right), the majority of which took place in Zurich and Davos. Although protests are generally peaceful in Switzerland, some civil actions in recent years have included violent attack types such as rioting and the use of explosive devices.
Seerist's Verified Events Track WEF-Related Unrest
31 January 2009 - In Geneva, hundreds of demonstrators clashed with police during protests against the WEF taking place in Davos.
24 January 2013 - In Hottingen, Zurich, activists protesting against the WEF in Davos attacked a bank branch with an explosive device, causing a several thousand damage.
22 January 2020 - In central Zurich, the police used tear gas against demonstrators protesting against the WEF in Davos; a passerby and a policeman were hospitalised.
14 January 2023 - More than 100 Strike WEF activists marched to Davos from Kublis, both in the Graubunden canton, in protest against the WEF.
Ahead of the 2024 WEF, the Swiss Defense Ministry announced that up to 5,000 security forces will be deployed to bolster policing and security measures in Davos, along with additional forces throughout the country to defuse potential security threats and violent unrest.
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15–19 January 2024
During the 2023 WEF, Seerist's team of experts verified one unrest event in Davos and several others across cities in Pakistan in response to the WEF meetings.
Create and save custom keyword searches with Events AI to sift through Seerist's curated sources for Switzerland and the World Economic Forum.
Seerist's Events AI identified social media and news articles indicating that activist organizations plan to protest during the events in Davos on 15 January.
Seerist also identified a 33% increase in negative sentiment across online coverage about the WEF on 11 January ahead of the conference .
Set alerts to stay informed on real-time security and operational developments during the WEF 2024.
Hover over the sections to learn how Seerist's Events AI is used to monitor developments in Davos ahead of the conference.
Stability in Davos
Seerist assesses stability globally with a feature called Pulse AI, which continuously identifies micro-changes in stability and looks for anomalies to alert users to actions that may pose a risk or present an opportunity to their operation. Pulse AI employs a revolutionary algorithm that analyzes both long-term and breaking information to develop living stability assessments worldwide.
The Pulse Stability score in Davos today is 73, up 1 point from yesterday, up 2 points from a week ago. The range of Pulse scores over the past 60 days is between 57-70. There is a moderate short-term rise over the last 5 days in which the Pulse score increased by 5 points. Looking seven days ahead, our Forecast sees a decrease in Pulse with an anticipated range between 65-75 and an average of 70.
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The likelihood of security threats affecting businesses or personnel is very low. Crime levels, including violent crime, are low. Organised criminal groups use the Swiss banking sector to store or launder money but beyond this are unlikely to target businesses in Switzerland.
There is a low likelihood of environmentalist, animal rights or radical leftist groups targeting pharmaceutical, chemical or finance companies. Switzerland is also home to left-wing Kurdish militant groups. The likelihood of a conventional land war directly affecting Switzerland is extremely low. Protests take place occasionally, typically resulting in only minor, temporary disruption to transport networks or road closures. Radical left-wing protesters target international finance events and companies. Switzerland in June 2020 introduced tougher penalties for individuals taking part in violence during protests following an increase in attacks on law enforcement during demonstrations.
Switzerland Security Risks
Protests occur occasionally in the larger cities. Geneva hosts many international organisations and meetings, and protesters at these events are often motivated by issues specific to particular countries. Authorities typically allow protests but enforce end times strictly, which can lead to clashes.
Radical leftist organisations stage occasional protests against the acute shortage of cheap housing, particularly in Zurich and Basel. The protesters’ prime targets are often financial institutions, which they believe symbolise many of the ills upon which Switzerland has built its wealth. Demonstrations typically take place in Davos and nearby cities in January during the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting. Violence can occur during such events but is usually limited because of the high levels of security in place.
Overview
Civil Unrest
Source: Control Risks
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