Dubai: The United Arab Emirates invited on Tuesday in Dubai, governments around the world to redesign how they operate in order to address 'a new reality and a new humanity.' This challenge was announced at the opening of the World Government Summit (WGS), which runs until Thursday to discuss the future of government.
According to Angola Press News Agency, Mohammad Al Gergawi, UAE Minister of State for Council of Ministers Affairs and chairman of the WGS organizing committee, identified four forces rapidly redefining the world: artificial intelligence, advanced medicine, neuroscience, and digital environments. Together, these forces have caused a shift in not only technology but also human evolution itself.
Al Gergawi emphasized that governments are currently dealing with "Generation Z," who were raised in an era of instant access and constant connectivity. By 2040, he predicted, Generation Z will represent 40% of the global workforce. He posed the critical question, "Are governments designed for the man of tomorrow or the man of yesterday?"
The UAE official urged world leaders to move beyond bureaucracy and focus on designing the future, highlighting that history shows some governments adapt and lead while others lag behind. He considers this new era a "historic opportunity" for governments to redefine themselves, with the primary role being to serve humanity.
Regarding advanced medicine, particularly genomics and early disease detection, Al Gergawi stated that falling genomic sequencing costs and predictive health advances could allow for the identification of diseases before birth. This, he said, would not only extend life expectancy but also improve the quality of life, reshaping labor markets, pension systems, and social policies.
The Emirati leader also discussed neuroscience, which has the potential to transform learning and human capacity. Technologies such as neural implants already enable participants in experimental tests to control devices using brain signals.
Al Gergawi noted the rise of digital environments as the fourth force, with more than 5.5 billion people now connected online. He observed that humans have transformed from living in small villages into inhabitants of a large, borderless world. In this interconnected world, identity, attention, and social behavior have been altered, with individuals maintaining multiple digital personas on different platforms. "These environments are creating a different mindset," he said, raising questions about how governments should respond to citizens whose lives are increasingly shaped by virtual spaces.
