Nigeria, others secure $22bn private capital from W’Bank

The World Bank Group mobilised $22bn in private capital for African economies in its 2026 fiscal year, up from approximately $9bn four years earlier, as the institution stepped up efforts to attract private investment into developing markets.

The World Bank Group disclosed this in a statement on Thursday, saying that the increase formed part of a wider expansion in the World Bank Group’s efforts to bring private investors alongside its own financing in developing economies.

“The growth was broad-based. PCM to lower-middle-income countries rose from $14bn in FY22 to $37bn in FY26, nearly tripling. In upper-middle-income countries, it increased from $12bn to $50bn, more than quadrupling.

“In low-income countries, among the most challenging settings for private capital, PCM was maintained at about $3bn. And across Africa, PCM rose from approximately $9bn to $22bn, an increase of nearly 150 per cent,” the lender stated.

Across developing economies, private capital mobilisation more than tripled from $35bn in FY22 to $112bn in FY26. Mobilisation in lower-middle-income countries rose from $14bn to $37bn, while that for upper-middle-income countries increased from $12bn to $50bn over the same period.

In low-income countries, where attracting private investment remains more difficult, private capital mobilisation was maintained at about $3bn.

“Three years ago, our shareholders and clients were clear: utilise World Bank Group financing and knowledge to mobilise more private capital and become a better partner to the private sector. We changed how we work to do that, faster, simpler, and as one World Bank Group,” World Bank Group President Ajay Banga said.

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“The result is $112bn mobilised this year, more than three times what we started. But the number only matters if the capital goes where it can create opportunity and jobs. That is the work ahead: keep removing barriers, keep expanding the pool of investors, and keep driving more capital into developing economies,” the executive stated.

The World Bank Group attributed the growth to changes introduced over the past three years to make its engagement with the private sector faster and simpler, including bringing its public and private sector operations closer together and expanding the financial tools available to investors.

The institution said it had also expanded guarantees, local-currency financing and equity tools while working to address foreign-exchange challenges and create new ways for institutional investors to participate in developing-economy investments.

The group issued more than $25bn in guarantees during FY26, exceeding its target of $20bn in annual issuance by 2030 four years ahead of schedule. The growth was led by the World Bank Group Guarantee Platform, which was created in 2024 to provide clients and investors with a single access point for guarantee products across the institution.

The increase in guarantees is particularly significant for Africa, where the World Bank Group announced in May that it aimed to more than double annual guarantee issuance on the continent to $6.4bn by 2030. The group said the additional guarantees were expected to mobilise $23bn in private capital for Africa over the following four years.

The World Bank Group said 55 per cent of its total financing, including its own account and mobilised capital, went to five job-intensive sectors in FY26, covering infrastructure and energy, agribusiness, healthcare, tourism and value-added manufacturing.

The institution said it was also developing an originate-to-distribute model to package and distribute investments to institutional investors at greater scale, to connect more lending to investment opportunities in developing economies.