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The World Government Summit (WGS) today launched a report titled “Governing the Metaverse,” in partnership with consulting firm Arthur D. Little.

The report reveals significant opportunities presented by the Metaverse in fields such as energy and utilities, healthcare, manufacturing and education, and proposes key policy recommendations to steer governance towards a sustainable ecosystem, drive investment solutions and empower communities in virtual or augmented reality environments.

Launching in tandem with the 2023 edition of the WGS, the report calls for governments and regulators to address the non-centralised nature of the Metaverse across Web3 technologies by developing succinct standards of multi-sourced data and legislation.

Long-term, the Metaverse can drive actionable impact across four major domains of food, housing, healthcare, and education by reducing costs and facilitating access.

To this end, government actors can begin by focusing on the following priorities:

1. Standards: Although still at an early stage, the party leading the development of Metaverse standards is the industry itself. Governments have a role to play in ensuring these standards allow for maximum participation.
2. Laws and Regulations: Introducing appropriate laws and regulations for user and data protection will be vital towards encouraging participation and investment in the Metaverse by consumers and industry players.
3. Policies and Incentives: Governments should consider where policy mechanisms and incentives are needed to drive development and adoption of the Metaverse, and on this front, several governments are already taking action.
4. Infrastructure: Given that the necessary infrastructure does not currently exist, eff¬orts to build it will be critical to the development of the metaverse. Here, governments have a role to support infrastructure development through subsidies, incentive programs, or through other appropriate models of partnership with the private sector.

Thomas Kuruvilla, Managing Partner at Arthur D. Little Middle East, said, "The report is launching at a key moment in time as disruptive technology is now finally being transmuted to the benefit of society, triggering investment along the way for dynamic exchanges to last long term.”