Blackrock and Blackstone, two of the world’s leading private investment management companies, will be attending the fifth anniversary of the Future Investment Initiative (FII), the foundation’s chief executive officer said in a press conference on Thursday.

Richard Attias, IFF’s CEO, also added that Africa will occupy a big place in the event, with presidents of Rwanda and Gabon attending, as well as several African speakers and leaders.

The head of the organization indicated that out of the 5200 participants registered for FII5, 70 percent are from Europe and North America.

Chinese attendees will be small in number because of the 3-week mandatory quarantine, but about 50 speakers from the country will be contributing, he added.

The first session of FII will open with a 90 minute roundtable chaired by Yassir al-Rumayyan, governor of the Public Investment Fund. The roundtable will be filled with global leaders and presidents discussing exactly what the investments are going towards. 

“The discussion will be about how we invest, where will the money go, where Africans, Europeans, Middle East, and Asians are putting their money,” said Attias, who added that the hope is the money is invested in the future of humanity. 

Clean water, education, healthcare, and gender equality will be some of the discussion points for future investment.

“We cannot forget the countries that don't have access to the vaccine, it will be a shame on our humanity if we do not invest in these people. We aim to impact humanity worldwide,” the CEO said. 

“Our mission is to build a better world and have an impact on the future and humanity,” Attias highlighted.  

Another focus of the 5th FII will be on AI and how humans and robotics cohabit in the future society. 

Attias confirmed that the discussions held during FII will be centered on the topic of making AI a pillar in our society. 

“Robots will be a part of our humanity, but the question is how do we create an environment where robots and humans can work together and can manage this environment where millions and millions of robots will become a part of our society,” he said.   

One of the aspects of FII the CEO shared is the event will not be about quantity but rather quality and the diversity of the voices and investors. 

COVID made learning extremely difficult for generations that do not have access to technology to study remotely, he said, adding the focus of the final discussion will be investing in the youth and empowering their roles in FII. 

 “We cannot fail the fourth generation of children,” Attias said, adding: “We cannot talk about the future if we do not talk about inclusivity, the future of tomorrow for the youth under 30.”