The IIHS Capacity Development Forum 2026 centres on enabling systems capacity for complex, technology‑mediated and partnership‑driven public systems, positioning capacity building as a core enabler of multi‑stakeholder public service delivery. Since 2021, the IIHS Capacity Development Forum (CDF) has moved from strengthening individual and institutional capacities to exploring ecosystem levers and enabling environments. CDF 2026 builds on this by focusing on multi‑stakeholder public service delivery, where governments increasingly work through networks of public, private, and civil society actors. At the same time, AI and digital technologies are reshaping work, learning, and institutional arrangements. The 2026 edition of the Capacity Development Forum connects earlier work on institutions and innovation ecosystems to a more integrated view of delivery architectures and capacities across the whole‑of‑society spectrum.
Over the last decade, public service delivery in India has shifted from predominantly state‑led provisioning to models that rely on collaboration, co‑production, and contractual partnerships with a range of non‑state actors. Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) and Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) exemplify this ‘whole‑of‑society’ approach, with national and state governments, Urban Local Bodies, Panchayats, private operators, CSOs, and community organisations working together to achieve ambitious outcomes. These models demand capacities beyond technical planning to include partnership management, contracting, regulation, monitoring, social mobilisation, and conflict resolution.
Similar shifts appear in sectors such as public transport electrification, where cities adopt Gross Cost Contract (GCC) models for electric bus fleets, and in distributed renewable energy, smart metering, and urban planning, where public–private‑community arrangements co‑produce outcomes. System performance depends on the combined capacities of multiple actors and the quality of their interfaces. CDF 2026 draws on these experiences to argue that capacity building must be conceived at a system level, encompassing public agencies, PSUs, private firms, CSOs, communities, and citizens as co‑creators of public services.
At the same time, national reforms led by the Capacity Building Commission (CBC) and Mission Karmayogi have moved capacity building from one‑size‑fits‑all training towards role‑based, lifelong learning centred on platforms such as iGOT‑Karmayogi. AI‑enabled tools now support personalised learning pathways, multilingual access, and blended‑learning experiences. CBC’s thematic campaigns and events such as ‘AI for Capacity Building’ workshop and Sadhana Saptah have highlighted priorities around use of data and technology in governance, citizen‑centric service delivery, and digital and AI literacy. These trends reinforce a broader transformation in public sector workspaces, where AI and data‑driven tools reshape tasks, skills, and organisational practices.
Long‑term frameworks such as Urban Policy 2047 emphasise collaborative, partnership‑based approaches to urbanisation, assigning roles to empowered local governments, strengthened state capacity, and greater involvement of private actors, communities, and citizens in design, financing, and management of infrastructure and services. The Economic Survey 2025-26 similarly frames state capacity as co‑created across the state, firms, and citizens. CDF 2026 aims to provide a platform for forward‑looking discussions on partnership‑based state capacity, anchored in national reforms, emerging AI‑enabled learning ecosystems, and long‑term urban policy commitments.