WEF launches global reskilling drive to reach 850 million people

The World Economic Forum (WEF) on Friday announced a major global initiative aimed at investing in skills development for more than 850 million people worldwide, as rapid advances in artificial intelligence, shifting geopolitics and the energy transition continue to reshape labour markets.

As part of the initiative, the WEF launched new Skills and Education Accelerators in India and Jordan , expanding a global network of 45 national accelerators that have so far supported 14.8 million people . These accelerators bring together governments, businesses and civil society organisations to turn global labour-market insights into country-specific policies focused on employment, education and inclusive economic growth.

The programme is part of the WEF’s flagship Reskilling Revolution , which is nearing its goal of equipping one billion people with better access to skills, education and economic opportunities.

In this context, reskilling refers to helping workers learn new skills to remain employable or transition into different roles as traditional jobs evolve or disappear due to automation, artificial intelligence and technological change. Rather than preparing people for a single lifelong career, reskilling focuses on enabling continuous learning so workers can adapt to fast-changing economic demands.

India and Jordan were selected for new accelerators due to their distinct labour-market challenges and opportunities .

The India Skills Accelerator will focus on removing barriers to equitable access to skilling, particularly for young people and workers in informal sectors, as the country seeks to harness its large workforce for future-ready jobs.

The Jordan Accelerator , meanwhile, will concentrate on leveraging emerging technologies to improve education quality and align learning outcomes with evolving labour-market needs in the Middle East.

The WEF said the Reskilling Revolution now works with 79 economies and 18 industries , supported by more than 350 organisations and over 35 chief executives . New commitments include corporate pledges, university-employer partnerships and national initiatives aimed at redesigning how people enter the workforce, transition between jobs and remain employable in an economy increasingly shaped by AI.

More than 25 technology companies have pledged to support 120 million workers through access to AI tools, skills training and job pathways. Companies with a stake in the initiative include Adobe, Cisco, Cornerstone OnDemand, JD.com, SAP, Salesforce, ServiceNow, Snowflake, Wipro and Workday, among others.

“The global economy is undergoing its most significant transformation in decades. But the future of work is not fixed,” WEF Managing Director Saadia Zahidi said. “How it unfolds for workers depends on opportunities for learning, support for job transitions and backing for entrepreneurship.”

To tackle these challenges, the WEF introduced a Learning-to-Earning Sandbox that brings together universities, employers and governments to test models combining paid work experience with structured skills training. At the WEF Annual Meeting 2026, nine platform economy companies also agreed on shared principles for responsible platform-based work, emphasising fair pay, equal access to opportunities and safe working conditions.