Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum, whose annual gathering of business and political leaders in the Swiss mountain resort of Davos became a symbol of globalisation, has resigned as chair of its trustees.

The Geneva-based WEF made the announcement on Monday after revealing earlier this month that the 87-year-old Schwab, who for decades has been the face of the Davos get-together, would be stepping down, without giving a firm timeline.

"Following my recent announcement, and as I enter my 88th year, I have decided to step down from the position of Chair and as a member of the Board of Trustees, with immediate effect," Schwab said in a statement released by the WEF.

The forum did not say why he was quitting.

The WEF board said in the statement it had accepted Schwab's resignation at an extraordinary meeting on April 20, with Vice Chairman Peter Brabeck-Letmathe serving as interim chairman while the search for a new chair began.

The German-born Schwab established the WEF in 1971 with the aim of creating a forum for policymakers and top corporate executives to tackle major global issues.

The village of Davos gradually became a fixture on the international calendar in January when political leaders, CEOs and celebrities got together in discreet, neutral Switzerland to discuss the agenda for the coming year.

CRITICISM

Widely regarded as a cheerleader for globalisation, the WEF's Davos gathering has in recent years drawn criticism from opponents on both left and right as an elitist talking shop detached from lives of ordinary people.

Headquartered above Lake Geneva at the other end of Switzerland from Davos, the WEF has also had to cope with negative reports about its internal culture.

The Wall Street Journal last year said the WEF's board was working with a law firm to investigate its workplace culture, after the newspaper reported allegations of harassment and discrimination at the forum. The WEF denied the allegations.

Shaken by the 2007-2009 global financial crisis, the WEF has also been buffeted by geopolitical tensions since the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and more protectionist U.S. trade policies. Some analysts see it as an institution in decline.

Schwab anticipated globalisation would come under fire long before Donald Trump first won the U.S. presidency and Britain voted to leave the European Union in 2016, events which analysts attributed to discontent with the prevailing economic order.

"A mounting backlash against (globalisation's) effects, especially in the industrial democracies, is threatening a very disruptive impact on economic activity and social stability in many countries," Schwab and his colleague Claude Smadja jointly wrote in an opinion piece in 1996.

"The mood in these democracies is one of helplessness and anxiety, which helps explain the rise of a new brand of populist politicians."
 

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