Building Back Broader: Policy Pathways for an Economic Transformation

The report outlines six key areas for economic transformation: fiscal and monetary policy, jobs and wages, education and skills, equity and social justice, new market creation, and frontier risk management. It argues that the pandemic exacerbated existing inequalities and that a 'new social contract' is required to ensure distributional justice and intergenerational equity. Key recommendations include shifting tax burdens toward higher incomes, investing in 'new economy' skills (such as digital and interpersonal competencies), implementing gender-responsive fiscal stimulus, and adopting a 'market co-creator' role for the public sector to drive green and sustainable growth. The document also introduces the concept of 'frontier risks'—threats with unknown likelihood or impact—and suggests horizon-scanning and narrative-based communication to build societal resilience.

• The pandemic has led to a 'divergent recovery' and reinforced historical inequalities, necessitating a new social contract to ensure equality of opportunity and distributional justice.
• Fiscal and monetary policies should be recalibrated to support a greener economy, as most current stimulus packages have a negative net climate impact due to continued support for carbon-heavy industries.
• Tax systems require redesign to be more progressive, including the potential for 'solidarity taxes' on the affluent and the implementation of a global minimum corporate tax rate to prevent profit-shifting by multinationals.
• The labor market is facing a 'double disruption' from the pandemic and automation; while 85 million jobs may be displaced by 2025, approximately 97 million new jobs are expected to emerge.
• Education systems must prioritize 'new economy skills'—specifically innovation and creativity, digital skills, global citizenship, and interpersonal skills—to ensure an equitable recovery.
• There is an urgent need to address the 'global care crisis' by enacting care-conducive work policies and investing in care infrastructure to prevent women from disproportionately dropping out of the labor market.
• Governments should transition from a role of 'burdensome bureaucracy' to 'market co-creator,' using patient finance and mission-driven research to scale new, sustainable markets.
• Societies are underprepared for 'frontier risks'—threats with unknown likelihood and impact, such as AI weaponry or human-engineered pandemics—due to cognitive biases and institutional pathologies.

APA

World Economic Forum (2021). Building Back Broader: Policy Pathways for an Economic Transformation. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GFC_NES_Policy_Pathways_for_an_Economic_Transformation_2021.pdf

Chicago

World Economic Forum. Building Back Broader: Policy Pathways for an Economic Transformation. 2021. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GFC_NES_Policy_Pathways_for_an_Economic_Transformation_2021.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Economic Forum |title=Building Back Broader: Policy Pathways for an Economic Transformation |date=June 2021 |url=http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GFC_NES_Policy_Pathways_for_an_Economic_Transformation_2021.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldeconomicforum2021building, author = {{World Economic Forum}}, title = {{Building Back Broader: Policy Pathways for an Economic Transformation}}, institution = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2021}, month = jun, url = {http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GFC_NES_Policy_Pathways_for_an_Economic_Transformation_2021.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }