UCT Business School ranks second in the world for sustainability in 2026

The University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business (UCT GSB) has strengthened its reputation on the international stage, taking second place globally in the 2026 Better World MBA Ranking, Cape {town} Etc reports.

The school climbed five positions in this year’s ranking, while its MBA programme retained its status as the best in Africa. The result puts UCT ahead of Australia’s Griffith Business School, which had held the top spot for six consecutive years before this year’s results.

Only Maastricht University’s School of Business and Economics in the Netherlands finished higher, taking first place among the 166 MBA programmes assessed worldwide.

Compiled by Canadian sustainability research and media company Corporate Knights, the ranking looks beyond traditional measures of business education. It considers how effectively MBA programmes incorporate sustainable development into their compulsory courses, as well as the impact graduates make once they enter the working world.

Course content accounts for 80% of the overall score, while graduate impact makes up the remaining 20%. That second measure received greater emphasis in 2026, with its weighting doubled from 10% to 20%.

For UCT GSB director and dean Dr Catherine Duggan, the achievement reflects the kind of leadership students are encouraged to develop in an African business environment.

She believes operating in African markets requires executives to be adaptable, strategic and comfortable navigating uncertainty, while remaining conscious of the wider consequences of business decisions.

Duggan also highlighted the innovation taking place across the continent, saying the school is proud to help bring African approaches to impact and innovation to a global audience.

The increased focus on graduate outcomes has also been welcomed by Associate Professor Caitlin Ferreira, programme director for the Modular MBA. She said the ranking now places greater importance on what students go on to achieve after completing their degrees.

At UCT GSB, sustainability and responsible leadership are incorporated throughout the MBA experience. Students engage with real challenges facing businesses and non-profit organisations, including through a capstone project designed to connect academic learning with practical problems.

The school is also placing emphasis on the changing demands of modern business, particularly as artificial intelligence becomes more prominent in corporate decision-making.

Dr Wayne Moodaley, programme director for the Full-Time MBA, said students are taught to consider the risks and wider consequences of using AI, including environmental and social costs, errors and accountability.

The result adds to a series of strong international rankings for UCT GSB. Its MBA has also retained the top position in Africa in the latest QS ranking, while its Executive MBA features among the world’s top 100 in the Financial Times ranking.

The school’s Master in International Management is another standout, with UCT GSB remaining the only African member of the CEMS alliance. The programme was ranked fourth globally in the 2027 QS Master’s in Management Rankings.

The latest Corporate Knights result places UCT GSB among the world’s leading institutions for sustainability-focused business education, with its position in Africa remaining firmly at the top.

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