Are the Chinese making Davos a hotspot?
Economic elite must compete at the WEF for corona tests
The organizers of the World Economic Forum WEF do not want to wait until official Switzerland introduces compulsory testing for travelers from China. One thing is clear in Davos: Anyone who wants to take part in the annual meeting of the business elite must be tested, no matter where they come from.
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The following applies to the business elite in Davos: Who …
Christian KolbeEditor Economics
One week from next Monday, the most important economic meeting in Switzerland, the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum WEF, will begin in Davos. Because China issued corona travel restrictions for its population at the beginning of December, a few dozen managers from the Middle Kingdom will also be there again.
A look at the list of participants shows that 55 people are currently planning to travel to Davos from China and Hong Kong. These include, for example, Scott Beaumont (51), the head of Google in China, Laura Cha (73), the head of the Hong Kong stock exchange, the Caixin Media publisher Hu Shuli (69) and Yuanqing Yang (58), president and CEO of the Computer giant Lenovo.
Around 100 Chinese in Davos
It is still unclear whether a high-ranking Chinese government delegation will also fly to Davos. But all the managers and company bosses don’t come alone, they usually bring escorts with them to support them in their appearances at the WEF.
Roughly estimated, around 100 business people are likely to arrive from China – a country in which the corona virus has been raging since the zero-Covid policy was abandoned and an estimated almost 250 million people have already been infected with the virus. That is almost every fifth of the 1.4 billion inhabitants.
Many European countries have reacted to the new corona threat from China and are demanding negative tests even before a passenger boards a plane from the People’s Republic to Europe. Some states have even taken to testing the sewage from these planes to learn more about the spread of the virus in China.
Compulsory testing for everyone
Not so in Switzerland: When asked by Blick, the Federal Office of Public Health BAG said they wanted to wait and see that there was still no urgent need for action. This means that there is no obligation to test people entering Switzerland from China.
The organizers of the WEF are more cautious. In Davos, all participants are required to take tests. And not just for them: Anyone who will be issued with an official access permit to the congress center and other event locations in the week after next – the so-called badge – must undergo a corona test. Usually within 24 hours of receiving the badge.
If this is positive or if it is omitted, access is automatically blocked. This makes the WEF a lot stricter than official Switzerland. Because the precautionary measures are the same as at the last annual meeting in May 2022. And even then, some corona cases could not be avoided.