GLOBAL EDUCATION FORUM 2026 will be held in Davos

GLOBAL EDUCATION FORUM 2026 will take place in Davos, Switzerland, as one of the key educational events within GLOBAL BUSINESS WEEK 2026. It will bring together school owners, founders of educational networks, university leaders, EdTech innovators, investors, franchise developers, education entrepreneurs, teachers, methodologists and policymakers who understand one simple truth: the future of education cannot wait for instructions from ministries. It must be created now. 

The world is changing faster than most formal education systems can reform. Artificial intelligence is transforming knowledge work. Children are growing up in a digital, global, entrepreneurial and unstable world. Parents are demanding better outcomes. Employers are looking for creativity, adaptability, leadership and problem-solving. At the same time, many schools are still built around industrial-age models: standardised lessons, slow curriculum reform, outdated assessment and limited exposure to entrepreneurship, technology and global thinking.

GLOBAL EDUCATION FORUM 2026 is designed for leaders who are actively transforming education: those who open new schools, scale international educational brands, buy and develop franchises, introduce AI and EdTech tools, create new curricula, build entrepreneurial programmes for children, and expand their networks across countries.

The scale of global education is enormous. UNICEF and ITU’s Giga initiative notes that no one knows the exact number of schools in the world, but gives an estimate of 6–7 million schools globally. Giga has already mapped more than 2.1 million schools in around 140 countries, demonstrating both the size of the sector and the data gap that still exists. Source: unicef.ch 

Education has become one of the world’s largest and most strategically important markets. HolonIQ estimates the global education market at US$7.6 trillion, with total spending expected to approach US$10 trillion by 2030. At the same time, UNESCO reports that 1.4 billion students were enrolled in school in 2024, while 273 million children and youth remained out of school, underscoring both the scale of progress and the urgency of reform. (holoniq.com)

The private and international-school segment is one of the most dynamic areas of the market. ISC Research reported 14,457 K–12 English-medium international schools and 7.3 million students in July 2024, generating about US$64 billion in annual fee income. By 2026, the international K–12 segment had reportedly passed 15,075 schools, serving about 7.7 million students, employing 730,000 staff, and generating US$69.3 billion in annual fee income. (ISC Research)

In Europe, most countries in recent international-school research showed median annual fees around US$10,000–15,000, while Switzerland was among the most expensive markets, with median prices in major cities ranging from about US$24,000 to more than US$30,000 per year. (international-schools-database.com). 

In Asia, the price range is especially wide: median international-school fees ranged from US$2,725 in Malaysia to US$35,621 in Beijing, China, with China standing out as the only Asian market in the cited research where median prices exceeded US$30,000 per year. (international-schools-database.com).

In Africa, international schools were generally the least expensive among the regions studied. The research cited Cairo at US$2,966, Cape Town at US$3,979, Mauritius at US$4,216, Kampala at US$4,341, Casablanca at US$5,441, Johannesburg at US$5,657, and Nairobi as the highest-ranking African city in the study at US$7,116 per year. (international-schools-database.com)

In the Americas, the gap is large. New York City had the highest median international-school price in the research at US$44,600 per year, while Toronto was around US$21,532 and Latin American cities such as Lima, Panama City and Monterrey ranged from about US$8,140 to US$9,300 per year. (international-schools-database.com)

In Australia, independent and international-school pricing depends heavily on city, year level and school type. Recent fee guides indicate broad annual ranges from roughly AUD 12,000–22,000 for lower-cost independent options to AUD 38,000–52,000+ for premium schools, while other analysis notes that some private-school fees can reach US$55,000-equivalent levels. (Tutopiya)

Key themes of the Forum. The Global Education Forum 2026 will examine the trends driving transformation in education markets worldwide. Expected discussion areas include: AI and digital learning; the rise of international and bilingual schools; entrepreneurship education; new models of private education; school leadership and governance; education investment; technology for assessment and personalised learning; future skills; sustainability and climate resilience in schools; and global mobility of students, families and educators. The forum will bring together leading voices from education, entrepreneurship and international business. Among the announced speakers are: Dr Olga Azarova (UK), Evan Yang (Republic of China), Christina Batruch (Switzerland), Arvils Pekuless (Lithuania), Cherry Chang (Republic of China), Wendy Silinyana (South Africa), Elena Chirich (Australia), Lyazzat Alshinova (Kazakhstan), Narmina Hasanova (Azerbaijan), Jamilya Kerimova (Turkmenistan), Dinora Saitova (Kazakhstan), Tetiana Markova (Ukraine), Viktoriya Trotska (USA), Tatiana Dermenzhi (UK), Dr Irene Khajalia (Georgia), Irina Denisova (Ukraine), and many other distinguished experts, entrepreneurs, educators and representatives of business communities.

The Global Education Forum 2026 is expected to be more than a conference. It will be a platform for partnerships, investment dialogue, school innovation and strategic cooperation between countries. As education becomes increasingly global, the strongest institutions will be those able to combine academic quality with technology, entrepreneurship, cultural intelligence and adaptability.

In Davos, from 9–12 July 2026, education leaders will gather to explore one of the most important questions of the decade: how can the world build schools and learning systems that prepare children not only for exams, but for the future of work, citizenship and human progress?

Join GLOBAL EDUCATION FORUM in the frame of GLOBAL BUSINESS WEEK 2026!

Book Your Spot: +44-744-218-77-07