Employment is the most important issue facing the world over the next decade, Vikram Pandit, chief executive of Citigroup, along with the other co-chairs of the World Economic Forum, told journalists in Davos Wednesday.

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The world needs 600 million new jobs in the next decade to cope with a rising population and the effects of the financial crisis, according to figures released earlier this week by the International Labor Organization.

"That`s going to need a lot of effort and focus and a lot of growth," Pandit said. "Nothing unleashes growth more than dealing with uncertainty."

This year`s summit, set in the middle of a continent where a debt crisis is still raging, promises to be gloomy.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has led the euro zone`s attempts to fight back and resolve the crisis alongside French President Nicolas Sarkozy, will officially open the summit later Wednesday.

The other co-chairs are: Yasuchika Hasegawa, president and chief executive officer, Takeda Pharmaceutical, Japan; Paul Polman, chief executive officer, Unilever; Alejandro Ram

First Published:Jan 27, 2012 2:50 PM IST