World Investment Forum 2026 opens in Qatar amid global economic uncertainty

The World Investment Forum 2026 opened in Qatar on Sunday, bringing together more than 5 000 participants to discuss global investment challenges and ways to increase capital flows to developing economies amid geopolitical tension and economic uncertainty.

Organised by UN Trade and Development (Unctad) and hosted by Qatar, the three-day forum, themed “Investing in the Future”, is attended by the prime ministers of Qatar, Lesotho, Libya and Madagascar, four deputy prime ministers and nearly 50 government ministers.

More than 80 sessions featuring over 400 speakers will cover investment policies, artificial intelligence, entrepreneurship, sustainable finance, climate change, tourism and emerging industries.

The forum opened as new Unctad data showed continued weakness in global investment activity.

Its latest Global Investment Trends Monitor, released on Sunday, said the value of international investment rose in the first half of 2026, supported by major transactions in strategic sectors, while new investment projects and cross-border transactions continued to decline worldwide.

Investment in sectors critical to development, including infrastructure, energy, healthcare and food systems, fell by more than 25% in developing countries, the report showed.

Unctad’s World Investment Report 2026 also found that more than 80% of global foreign direct investment was concentrated in just 20 economies in 2025, highlighting persistent disparities in international capital flows.

The forum’s agenda includes two ministerial meetings on investment and entrepreneurship, as well as discussions on investment opportunities in the Gulf region and other emerging markets.

For the first time, the event features a dedicated track on artificial intelligence, focusing on investment in AI infrastructure and opportunities for developing economies.

Other new topics include investment in post-conflict reconstruction and recovery, the space industry and cultural sectors.

Launched in 2008, the World Investment Forum is held every two years to discuss international investment policies and promote investment in sustainable development