The Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research (ECSSR) has announced the launch of the inaugural Emirati Education Forum, which will take place on 21 October 2026 at ADNEC Centre Abu Dhabi. The forum will serve as an annual national strategic platform, bringing together partners from across the education ecosystem to anticipate major transformations in education and examine key priorities and challenges from a national perspective.
Held under the theme, Five Pillars of Education: Toward an Integrated Education Ecosystem, the forum embraces a student-centered vision founded on the complementary roles of five key components: educational institutions, teachers, families, education policymakers and regulators, and supporting institutions and the wider community.
Strategic dialogues through the forum will strengthen integration across the Five Pillars of Education and will help shape insights and recommendations to support the development of the UAE’s education ecosystem and policies.
The forum’s agenda will feature ministerial dialogues, plenary and concurrent sessions, and specialised presentations. At its heart is the National Education Charter, and discussions will begin with a ministerial dialogue titled, The National Education Charter: From Vision to Practice—How Can the Five Pillars of Education Work Together?
The charter is the national reference document defining the values, attributes and skills that learners in the UAE should develop throughout their educational journey. It also provides a unified framework for shaping education policies, curricula and programmes.
This focus reflects the forum’s student-centered vision and its conviction that a high-quality educational experience depends on effective collaboration across the entire ecosystem. This will help translate the charter’s objectives into educational practice and equip students with the skills required for the future.
The forum will examine a broad range of issues concerning the future of education and the development of an integrated education ecosystem. These include The Emirati Learner: The Five Pillars of Education and Their Roles, Religious Education: Content and the Changing Demands of the Modern Era, The Emirati Teacher, The Family’s Role in Education, Alignment Between Education and Labor Market Needs, The Use of Research to Inform Policymaking, The Standing of the Arabic Language, Education Policy, Curricula and Assessment in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, and The Balanced Use of Digital Technology in Education.
The forum reflects the UAE’s national commitment to placing investment in people at the heart of its development journey. It supports the goals of the We the UAE 2031 vision and the ambitions of UAE Centennial 2071 to establish a world-leading education system and reinforce education as a strategic driver of national development and global competitiveness.
The ECSSR is organising the forum in partnership with a wide-ranging group of national institutions: the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research; the Ministry of Education; the Ministry of Family; United Arab Emirates University; Khalifa University of Science and Technology; Mohamed bin Zayed University for Humanities; Zayed University; the Higher Colleges of Technology; the University of Dubai; Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University; the Abu Dhabi Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training; and the Emirates College for Advanced Education. This partnership reflects the collective commitment of the UAE’s education institutions to advancing the national education ecosystem.
The forum is expected to welcome approximately 1,200 participants, including policymakers, education regulators and institutions, experts, researchers, education professionals, families and parents. Teachers, academic staff, students, supporting organisations and private-sector representatives will also attend, reflecting the breadth and diversity of stakeholders shaping education in the UAE.
