France 2030: Four Scenarios

Each year, within the framework of its “Vigie” pooled horizon-scanning system, the Futuribles International Association publishes a report surveying the long-term and emergent trends in the strategic environment of companies and organizations over the next 10-20 years, which complements the work done over the course of the year. The Rapport Vigie 2011, published in late December 2010, offers a foresight analysis of seven key issues, before going on to propose four scenarios for France in the years to 2030.

Cécile Désaunay and François de Jouvenel, who made very major contributions to the production of this report (available in its entirety only to partner-members of Futuribles International), offer a summary in this article of these four scenarios relating to France in 2030: “Competitiveness and Social Responsibility of Companies”, “Dual Society”, “Broad Middle Class” and “Local Economy”. As in all exploratory foresight studies, the authors do not favour any of the scenarios in particular, the four of them enabling the reader to form an idea of the various possible trajectories for France and the French over the next 20 years.

For the moment, all options remain open. It is for the decision-makers to bend their policies in the direction required by their preferred scenario and for public opinion to tell its representatives clearly which future seems most desirable.