United Nations, Oct. 16 -- A UN report released on Thursday called for greater social inclusion as rapid economic, digital and energy transformations risk leaving billions of people behind.

The World Social Report 2026, launched by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, warned that billions of people still lack access to the jobs, skills, services and protections needed to benefit from these changes.

Despite progress in income, education, health and access to services, significant gaps persist. In 2025, 58 percent of workers worldwide were informally employed, 27 percent of young women aged 15 to 24 were neither employed nor in education or training, and 26 percent of the global population lacked internet access.

Income ineq...