MalayMail-Jan 17
The latest World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Risks Report 2025 released recently has listed economic downturn such as recession or stagnation as the biggest concerns faced by Malaysians. It also flagged Malaysia as one of the countries at risk of being targeted by United States trade measures, highlighting the importance of strategic risk management to ensure the country’s resilience. “Rising geopolitical tensions, a fracturing of global trust and the climate crisis are straining the global system like never before,” said Mirek Dušek, Managing Director of the WEF. Dušek stressed the urgency of fostering collaboration to build resilience, warning that “the stakes have never been higher” as interconnected crises demand coordinated action. The report also highlighted four other top worries of Malaysians from its survey: labor shortages, inflation, food supply issues, unemployment or lack of economic opportunity. This comes as the report identified state-based armed conflict as the most pressing immediate global risk for 2025. Nearly one-quarter of respondents ranked geopolitical tensions as their top concern, showing the increasing fragmentation of global systems. The report, based on a survey of over 900 global experts and policymakers, also named misinformation and disinformation as persistent short-term risks, threatening societal cohesion and trust in governance. Environmental risks dominated the longer-term outlook, with extreme weather, biodiversity loss, and ecosystem collapse among the top concerns. These were compounded by technological risks, including challenges posed by artificial intelligence. Over half of respondents anticipate instability within the next two years, with global leaders increasingly pessimistic about the decade ahead. The report predicts escalating challenges to international cooperation and governance structures. The report is based on the Global Risks Perception Survey (GRPS) involving over 900 experts across academia, business, government, international organizations and civil society ran between September 2 and October 18, 2024. Read more at:
