The Davos World Economic Forum was postponed on Monday due to the global spread of the COVID-19 Omicron variant.

Instead of the originally scheduled Jan. 17-21, 2022, event in Davos, Switzerland, the meeting of global leaders and CEOs will take place in early summer.

Instead of the in-person meeting there will be an online series of “State of the World” sessions that will focus on providing solutions to economic challenges.

The forum brings together CEOs, politicians, academics, NGOs and religious leaders. They take part in role-playing events to develop ideas to solve crises with economic solutions.

Each year the WEF has a thematic focus, from globalization to climate change or international conflicts and wealth management, among other key topics of global concern. Last year’s theme was "Stakeholders for a Cohesive and Sustainable World.”

Some of those invited to speak were former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Swedish youth climate activist Greta Thunberg and former U.S. President Donald Trump.