A logo is pictured in the Congress Center ahead of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, January 13, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Reuters
About a dozen Indian lounges have dominated the main Promenade street of Davos as the snowcapped resort town readies for the five-day World Economic Forum Annual Meeting beginning Monday.
Adorning the event are WeLead Lounge – set up to showcase women leadership, India Engagement Centre, pavilions by Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Karnataka, and IT majors like Wipro, Infosys, TCS and HCLTech showcasing power of AI and technology.
And this time, in addition to Indian tea, coffee, ‘samosas’ and ‘kachoris’, there will also be Indian liquor flying off the shelves during ‘Spirit of India Hour’ on two evenings at a few bars, restaurants and lounges.
In all, 60-70 lounges and pavilions have been set up by governments and corporates from across the world, of which about a dozen are Indian ones.
Indian participation is also significant with three union ministers, as many chief ministers and a large number of officials and CEOs expected to speak over the next five days.
Apex industry chamber CII has also planned a big campaign this time.
The Indian industry’s presence at Davos has been conceptualized with the theme of ‘Credible India’ to showcase and spotlight India’s impressive economic achievements and its future potential as a significant contributor to global growth.
While the India Lounge has moved to a new place, CII has set up the CII Indian Business Hub and the industry body will also host several breakfast and lunch sessions, fireside chats and panel discussions.
CII has also initiated the ‘Spirit of India Hour’ which would take place at four locations to showcase Indian wine and spirits.
Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani will inaugurate WeLead lounge on Monday. It would host various gender-related conversations to drive women-led development.