Ten things to watch at the World Investment Forum 2026

Global foreign direct investment reached $1.6 trillion in 2025, but more than 80% went to just 20 economies, according to the World Investment Report 2026. From 25 to 27 October, more than 5000 participants, from heads of government and ministers to CEOs, sovereign wealth fund leaders, academics and civil society, will meet in Doha to find ways to make investment reach more economies and deliver for development.

1. Investment for development at the centre
More than 80 sessions featuring over 400 speakers, tackle the many dimensions of investment for development: investment policy, investment promotion and special economic zones, sustainable finance, climate and oceans, entrepreneurship and small businesses, AI, and tourism and culture.

Discussions range from international investment agreements and critical minerals to sustainable stock exchanges and resilience in small island developing states. The common thread is how to steer capital to the economies and sectors that need it most.

2. Top decision makers in the room
Four prime ministers, from Qatar, Lesotho, Libya and Madagascar, and four deputy prime ministers join nearly 50 ministers. Two ministerial meetings, focused on investment and entrepreneurship, will set policy priorities.

3. Record turnout from international and regional organizations
The heads of the World Trade Organization, UN Tourism, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) will attend. They are joined by the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the African Continental Free Trade Area and more.

4. AI gains momentum
AI infrastructure is now the largest strategic investment sector, according to the World Investment Report 2026. The question is whether developing economies share in this growth or fall further behind. For the first time, AI has its own Forum track, featuring CEOs and companies at the cutting edge of technology.

5. Investing in peace
For the first time, peace is on the World Investment Forum agenda. Reconstruction needs are rising while investment in fragile and conflict-affected economies is impacted. The Forum will explore what it takes to move capital from relief to recovery, drawing on reconstruction experience across different contexts.

6. New frontiers: space and culture
Space is on the Forum agenda for the first time. Falling launch costs are opening the space economy to far more countries, and the Forum asks how developing economies can attract that investment and meaningfully participate in the sector.

Culture creates jobs, draws tourism and shapes identity, yet rarely features in investment portfolios. A plenary on investing in art and civilization will bring new voices, including Art Basel and Qatar Museums, to explore what makes culture investable.

7. Centre Stage
A new open stage will host live start-up pitches, country investment presentations and entrepreneurs who have built global companies from anywhere in the world.

8. The United Nations system working to deliver together
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), UN Tourism, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) and others will co-organize sessions, linking investment to culture, industry, space and trade.

9. Al Jazeera, live from Doha
For the first time, Al Jazeera is broadcasting live from the World Investment Forum, with an on-site studio as the Forum’s global media partner.

10. Awards and launches
These are just a few of the launches and announcements expected in Doha:

• Investment Promotion Awards (25 October)
• 9th Women in Business Awards (26 October)
• Global Founders Fellowship (26 October)

Plenary sessions will be livestreamed. See the full programme on the Forum’s official website.