The International Social Security Association (ISSA) has held its 20th Forum for Technical Commissions (TC Forum), bringing together experts from across its global membership to define work plans for the 2026-2028 triennium.

Held virtually from 23 February to 5 March 2026, the TC Forum marked the start of the new three-year cycle. Through opening and closing plenary sessions and a series of individual meetings, the technical commissions and working groups developed concrete work plans, closely aligned with the ISSA's strategic and topical priorities for the triennium:

1. Management and innovation for a more effective social security
2. Social security coverage for a changing labour market
3. Social security for changing life-courses and ageing societies
4. Social security financing and sustainability

There has been high interest to join the technical commissions and working groups. There are 376 members from 59 institutions in 44 countries currently serving. Among them, 115 members are newly appointed, and 17 ISSA member institutions from 15 countries are new in the technical commissions for this triennium.

From discussions to coordinated work plans

All 16 technical commissions and working groups participated in the TC Forum, developing their work plan for 2026-2028. These outline activities included developing and updating ISSA Guidelines, preparing studies and technical reports, webinars, events and capacity building activities. In many ways, the technical commissions are the backbone of the projects and contents development in the ISSA, and they play a key role for the programmes of the international conferences.

The TC Forum also provided a platform to identify cross-cutting themes and strengthen collaboration across commissions and working groups. Potential cross-cutting areas include responding to ageing populations, supporting rehabilitation and return to work, harnessing digital technologies and artificial intelligence, data exchange and international coordination, and social security education and culture.

What's new for 2026-2028

The technical commissions play a key role in the development and updates of the ISSA Guidelines. During the TC Forum, they agreed to develop new guidelines in change management in social security administration, and administration of international social security agreements.

These new areas reflect the growing importance of both managing institutional transformation and strengthening international coordination and cooperation in today's world. Change management has been a recurrent topic in ISSA webinars and is a key topic in a volatile world. International agreements have also been high on the agenda, with a dedicated working group, and several reports and webinars.

A new working group on the extension of social security coverage participated for the first time and will play a key role in updating the ISSA Guidelines on Administrative Solutions for Coverage Extension over the triennium. Altogether, six sets of ISSA Guidelines will be updated:

• Actuarial Work for Social Security
• Administrative Solutions for Extending Coverage
• Communication by Social Security Administrations
• Continuity and Resilience of Social Security Services & Systems
• Human Resource Management in Social Security Administration
• Promoting Sustainable Employment

What comes next

The agreed work plans will guide work over the next three years, contributing to the implementation of the ISSA Programme and Budget 2026-2028 and supporting members in strengthening social security systems worldwide. The technical commissions and working groups will now start implementing their plans.

In June 2027 they will meet physically in Geneva, Switzerland for in-depth discussions half-way into the triennium, before the results are presented at the World Social Security Forum in Mexico in 2028.