Global Risk Report 2022

Global Risk Report 2022

Why in news?

• The 17th edition of the Global Risk Report has ranked ‘climate action failure’ as the number one risk, with potentially the most severe impact over the next decade.

About the Global Risk Report:

• The Global Risks Report is an annual study published by the World Economic Forum.
• It tracks global risk perceptions among risk experts and world leaders in business, government, and civil society.
• The report also explores the interconnectedness of risks, and considers how the strategies for the mitigation of global risks might be structured.

Key findings:

• It examines risks across five categories:
• (1) Environmental Risks:
  • WEF ranked ‘climate action failure’ as the number one risk, with potentially the most severe impact over the next decade.
  • The most documented risks associated with climate action failure are physical risks, such as an increase in the frequency and severity of extreme weather.
• (2) Economic Risks:
  • It majorly perceived the short-term economic outlook to be volatile, fractured, or increasingly catastrophic.
  • The most serious challenge persisting from the pandemic is economic stagnation.
  • The report says developing economies (except China) will have fallen 5.5 per cent below their pre-pandemic expected gross domestic product growth by 2024, while advanced economies will have surpassed it by 0.9 per cent.
• (3) Geopolitical Risks:
  • In the longer-term horizon, geopolitical risks is a matter of concern—including “geoeconomic confrontations”, and “geopolitical resource contestation”.
• (4) Societal Risk:
  • Growing insecurity in the forms of economic hardship, worsening impacts of climate change and political persecution will force millions to leave their homes in search of a better future.
•  (5) Technological Risk:
  • Artificial intelligence, space exploitation, cross-border cyberattacks and misinformation and migration and refugees were rated as the top areas of international concerns.
  • The prospect of 70,000 satellite launches in coming decades, in addition to space tourism, raises risks of collisions and increasing debris in space, amid a lack of regulation.

Add ons:

• The report also noted that societal and environmental risks have worsened the most since the start of the pandemic, with “social cohesion erosion” and “livelihood crises” taking the top spots.
• Other risks identified as having worsened significantly are “debt crises”, “cybersecurity failures”, “digital inequality” and “backlash against science”.

PRACTICE QUESTION:

Global risk report, which tracks global risks perceptions among risk experts and world leaders in business, government, and civil society, is published by:

(a) World Bank

(b) United Nations Development Programme

(c) International Monetary Fund

(d) World Economic Forum

Answer