Former Swedish Prime Minister and Kreab/Strategy XXI  Chairman, Carl Bildt, traveled to Beijing in November to be a featured speaker at Business Week’s Ninth Annual CEO Forum. Additionally he spoke at the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Beijing. 

Bildt noted in both addresses that he sees trouble ahead if European countries fail to find ways to integrate new arrivals from the developing world.

Joining Bildt at the Business Week CEO Forum were former US President George Bush, former UK Prime Minister John Major Chinese Minister of Finance Mr. Jin Renqing and many other dignitaries.  The event attracts some of the world’s top CEOs and is considered to be a leading platform for global views on crucial Asian issues.

The panel on which Mr. Bildt appeared was entitled, “The CEO Watch-List: Restoring Economic and Social Balance, Maintaining Momentum.” It was a probing examination of the growing imbalance between rich and poor in the world today.

“The global economy has moved rapidly past the rosy-hued stage of doing no wrong and this year has experienced a fair share of ups and downs,” stated Mr. Bildt. “While real global GDP growth has been very strong, largely powered by robust consumer spending in the United States and booming investment in China, the performances in Europe and Japan have been sluggish.”

Mr. Bildt was also interviewed on China Central Television (CCTV) for “Dialogue,” an internationally aired program of conversations with world leaders. The program’s topic was “The Dilemma of Cultural Identity” and it explored how the arrival of large numbers of immigrants from the Middle East, North Africa and East Asia are pushing aside old concepts of what it means to be French, British, German or even Swedish.

Asked if recent street riots by Muslim immigrants in France represented “the tip of the iceberg,” Mr Bildt answered, “The entire situation is dependent on how we organize our economic and labor markets. We have not done nearly enough to create new jobs in Europe. That’s one of the root causes of the problems we’ve seen: serious unemployment. If you want to protect only those who already have jobs, well, that’s fine but be aware what that means: You are preventing new people form entering the labor market.”

Asked to elaborate on what a lack of jobs means to the integration of new citizens, Mr. Bildt said, “What happens when the newly arrived end up in the suburbs, can’t find a job and don’t see much of a future? That how you end up with situations like the one we had in Paris.”

As to whether Sweden will ever accept larger numbers of immigrants, he said: "Yes. It may be a burden for taxpayers now but over the long term, even the medium term; these immigrants represent a net gain. If you look at economic development in Europe, you'll see the opportunity.  We need to add more young people to the workforce. It's going to become more difficult to care of the growing number of elderly. " 

At a gathering of over 100 representatives from Scandinavian companies now present in China that was hosted by the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Beijing, Mr. Bildt remarked on the changes these companies have seen in both the European and Chinese business communities and on consumer spending. Mr.  Bildt has been the Chairman of Kreab/Strategy XXI since 2003 and this was his third official trip to China. The company has had a presence in Beijing since 1993 and recently moved into new facilities last March.