The five-day World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2011 will start Wednesday in the Swiss town Davos under the theme of "Shared Norms for the New Reality."

Based in Geneva, the WEF is an international non-governmental organization committed to improving the state of the world by engaging leaders in partnerships to shape global, regional and industrial agendas.

The forum, initially known as the European Management Forum, was founded by Klaus M. Schwab, a professor of business policy in Switzerland, in 1971.

In 1987, the forum changed its name to the World Economic Forum and sought to broaden its vision by focusing on international conflicts. Its agenda now includes the most pressing problems facing the world, ranging from political, military and security concerns to bilateral and regional issues.

The foundation, best known for its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, is also called "Davos Forum."

The forum currently has more than 1,000 members, all of which are major companies driving the world economy forward. Also, the forum forges strategic and industry partnerships with its selected members. It sponsors international economic seminars each year together with state governments or enterprises worldwide.

Due to its increasing global influence, the forum has been hailed as a "top-level non-governmental global economic forum" in which international political leaders, business leaders as well as leaders of civil and social organizations can exchange views on global economic issues.

There are more than 2,500 participants representing over 100 countries who will attend this year's annual meeting, including over 30 heads of state or government and at least double that among ministers, plus over 1,400 business leaders from the top 1,000 companies from around the world.

The forum invited the first Chinese delegation to Davos in 1979. In June 2006, it opened its regional office in Beijing. In September 2007, the WEF held its first edition of the Summer Davos Forum in China as the world is showing an increasing interest in the country's economic development.