World economy
On Thursday Chancellor Angela Merkel met with a World Economic Forum business delegation at the Federal Chancellery. Talks revolved around the topical issues in national and international economic policy, including transatlantic relations and digitalisation.
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Chancellor Angela Merkel and Klaus Schwab, Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, before their meeting at the Federal Chancellery
Photo: Bundesregierung/Bergmann
"We are living in a time of dramatic technological revolution, the consequences of which are becoming increasingly clear," declared Chancellor Angela Merkel at the start of her meeting with a business delegation of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Berlin.
Challenges for humanity
She pointed in particular to digitalisation and artificial intelligence, which are posing challenges to the whole of humanity. The challenges are not purely economic in nature, she said. They also have an ethical dimension. With respect to sustainability, what is called for is conserving natural resources and ensuring that economic activity is sustainable.
New balance of power in the world
Earlier Angela Merkel had pointed to the shifting balance of power in the world, and said that we must respond to this. In this context, the Chancellor called for a capital increase for the World Bank and a change in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) quotas. She pointed to the United Nations Security Council and the World Trade Organization and said that "we have been waiting for years" for them to be reformed.
Germany’s contribution an obligation
As a country with 80 million inhabitants, Germany must be realistic about its own importance in the global economy. Germany faces competitors with over one billion inhabitants. But we can make a contribution and we have an obligation to make a contribution," stressed the Chancellor. "We intend to accept this responsibility."