It’s OK to fail, says French president Emmanuel Macron
![France's President Emmanuel Macron gestures during the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland January 24, 2018. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC11BB25E1C0](https://assets.weforum.org/article/image/large_LsgTRVUW8-IJGh_ois0BgKb4CRlzpToBhkmwfSIESNM.jpg)
Take a chance, France: Emmanuel Macron at Davos Image: REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
![A hand holding a looking glass by a lake](/uplink.jpg)
Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale
Stay up to date:
leadership
France is undergoing a culture change to flirt with risk and failure on its path to becoming an innovation powerhouse, according to its president.
"I often say in France it was forbidden to fail, and forbidden to succeed," said Emmanuel Macron, from the stage of Davos 2018.
Macron, who shook up French politics to found his own political party and win the presidential elections in 2017, spoke of a break from the rules and formalities of the past.
“Cultural change is as important as concrete reforms,” he said. “When you take risk, you need reward, and you have to reduce this cost of failure … and that’s the change we’re making in France.”
Last month, the French government passed a law echoing this spirit: citizens have the “right to make mistakes” in official documents like tax returns, if they are acting in good faith.
In his Davos speech, President Macron stressed the importance of shifting to an innovation-based economy, with a premium on education, entrepreneurialism and creativity.
The forces of globalization and technological change called for a new approach from governments, he said.
“For years, the best answer from Left and Right was - I will protect you from any change … we need to provide the real protection, which is education.”
In a bid to make France more competitive, President Macron announced a new 10 billion euro fund to finance innovation and research.
France is currently the 22nd most competitive economy in the world, according to World Economic Forum research, trailing northern European peers like Germany (5th) and the UK (8th).
“We will make innovation the centrepiece of the economy,” President Macron said, calling France a “nation of entrepreneurs.”
![](https://assets.weforum.org/editor/yv5YGpCr-IpG7IXqAyoL8KIl3gtkAsx8DxcregAAyOU.jpg)
Don't miss any update on this topic
Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.
License and Republishing
World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.
The Agenda Weekly
A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda
You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.
More on LeadershipSee all
Natalie Pierce and Maria Sol Adaime Gabris
July 11, 2024
Andre Hoffmann, Nolita Thina Mvunelo and Felix Rüdiger
July 10, 2024
Natalie Pierce
July 10, 2024
Ionica Berevoescu, Julie Ballington and Lana Ačkar
June 24, 2024
Gareth Francis
June 21, 2024
Pim Valdre and Nicolas Salomon
June 19, 2024