Business and political leaders, including H.R.H Mohammed Bin Salman, gather for first day of Future of Investment Initiative conference in Riyadh

• Delegates call for new global compass to boost economic environment and supercharge renewable energy investments
• CEOs warn that geopolitical environment presents major challenges ahead but compelling investment opportunities abound
• World Bank President Ajay Banga commits resources to tackling climate change in addition to eradicating poverty, as summit wrestles with a new vision for humanity

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Oct. 25, 2023 /CNW/ -- The opening day of the seventh Future Investment Initiative (FII7) saw a firm focus on how the global community can successfully navigate the emerging new norms of relations amidst instability, climate concerns and social inequality with delegates agreeing with calls for a new 'global compass' in order to incentivise and support investment opportunities.

Business and political leaders, including H.R.H Mohammed Bin Salman, gather for first day of Future of Investment Initiative conference in Riyadh

Leading a panel of changemakers, that included Jamie Dimon, Chairman & CEO, JP Morgan Chase & Co and Laurence D. Fink, Chairman & CEO, BlackRock, H.E. Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the Governor for Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, outlined a course through these unmapped waters, and how to convert challenges into opportunities for growth, impact, and resilience, particularly in relation to the Kingdom's renewable energy ambitions.

H.E. Yasir Al-Rumayyan said: "What we are doing in KSA is a good model for the world. By 2030, we want 50 per cent of our power generation to be based on renewable energy and the other 50 per cent will be based on gas which emits less than liquid. We have to invest more in renewable energy. If you look at the targets, by 2045, $283 trillion dollars that need to be invested cumulatively from 2020."

Ray Dalio, Founder, CIO Mentor & Member of the Board, Bridgewater Associates, LP said: "What we see today and as we go into US elections which are going to be over irreconcilable differences over wealth and power. Look at geopolitical issues and climate issues. Climate issue will cost us $5-10 trillion dollars a year in world GDP. It must be addressed."

Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEO of JP Morgan, said, "Fiscal spending is higher than it's ever been in peacetime, by a significant margin. A 25 basis-point rate hike won't make much of a difference, but a 100 basis-point shift across the yield curve would. What we see today resembles the 1970s—a lot of spending. Governments are pushing for ESG, but without implementing carbon taxes or a rational strategy."

With energy a major theme for the day, the crucial need to supercharge the transition to greater greener energy leads the FII's special Energy Summit.  This explored the extent to which the Paris Agreement goals can align with economic growth, the role technology is likely to play in eliminating greenhouse gases, and the pace of global decarbonization.

HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman AlSaud, Minister of Energy for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia issued a clarion call, said: "The Kingdom has demonstrated not just a transition, but an aspiration to be a model for how a hydrocarbon economy can evolve. We're aiming for the trilemma: energy security, affordability, and economic growth. On the sustainability front, our commitment to the Paris Agreement is unwavering. We not only signed it, but meticulously negotiated every detail. Execution of these commitments isn't optional; it's obligatory."

Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank, added: "The new mission of the World Bank is to focus not just on eradicating poverty and sharing prosperity, but on [ensuring] a liveable planet and addressing the world's intertwined crises and challenges."

At the Future Investment Initiative summit underway in Riyadh (24 -26 October) 6,000 leaders, investors and innovators from around the globe are taking part in over 200 panels and discussions designed to tackle the biggest issues facing humanity's health, prosperity and survival.

Richard Attias, CEO of the Future Investment Initiative Institute, said: "The future of values for humanity is a future that embraces empathy, inclusivity, tolerance, knowledge, ethics and peace. It is a future where we recognize our shared responsibility to care for our planet and each other."

About FII Institute

The Future Investment Initiative (FII) Institute is a global non-profit foundation driven by data with an investment arm and one agenda: Impact on Humanity. Global and inclusive, we foster great minds from around the world and turn ideas into real-world solutions in four critical areas: Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Robotics, Education, Healthcare and Sustainability.

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SOURCE Future Investment Initiative Institute

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