The World Economic Forum (WEF) has deferred its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, planned for January 17-21, 2022, due to “continued uncertainty” over the Omicron-strain viral outbreak.

WEF made the announcement on its website, saying that the current circumstances surrounding the spread of the new variant of coronavirus make it “extremely difficult to deliver a global in-person meeting.”

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The statement goes on the explain that “Despite the meeting’s stringent health protocols, the transmissibility of Omicron and its impact on travel and mobility have made deferral necessary.”

The Forum will instead hold a series of online sessions that bring participants together “to focus on shaping solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges.”

The Covid-19 pandemic has interrupted the traditional January gathering in the Swiss Alps for a second consecutive year.

The 2021 forum was initially rescheduled to take place in August 2021 in Singapore but was then canceled. The 2022 business event is now expected to take place in the early summer, WEF organizers said.

The World Economic Forum was established in 1971 as a not-for-profit foundation and is headquartered in Geneva. It is the world’s biggest annual economics event, attracting business leaders and politicians from around the globe.

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