ISLAMABAD, Jan 16: President General Pervez Musharraf will be leading Pakistan’s delegation to the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos next week where he will make a special address in the plenary session on ‘leadership in the wake of natural disasters’.

The three-day meeting that will bring together many world and business leaders are scheduled for Jan 25-27.

Announcing the visit on Monday, a foreign ministry statement said: “It will be an exclusive event where the president will share his views on the situation of Pakistan in the wake of 8th October earthquake disasters.”

The 2006 WEF session will focus on the challenges confronted by the Muslim world in modern times. The participants in panel discussion will examine the experience of the progressive Islamic states and their influence on Muslim societies.

The other panel discussion in which the president will be a keynote speaker is on ‘regionalism on the rise and its effects on the international system’. It will be another event of significance for Pakistan in the wake of the quake and subsequent inflow of humanitarian assistance.

The main theme of this year’s meeting is ‘The Creative Imperative’. The purpose is to address the issue of adapting existing institutions at national, regional and international levels to the challenges of the globalized world. “Pakistan already initiated a reform and renewal process to promote synergy amongst our national institutions as well as with international institutions,” the statement said.

The president will hold bilateral meetings with several leaders. He will be hosting lunch and dinner for the CEOs of top companies and will also be the guest of honour at the working dinner regarding building capacity on humanitarian assistance.

Pakistan has been actively participating in WEF activities since early Nineties. The then prime minister Benazir Bhutto visited Davos twice while then president Farooq Ahmed Khan Leghari participated in the Forum meeting in 1996. Mr Nawaz Sharif attended its meetings in 1993 and in 1998 when he was the premier.