W’Bank targets 32 million Nigerians with electricity by 2032

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The World Bank has targeted connecting 32 million Nigerians to electricity and providing 58 million more people with access to broadband internet under its new Country Partnership Framework for Nigeria covering 2026 to 2032.

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The framework also targets 9.5 million farmers to benefit from activities designed to improve agricultural production, value addition and market linkages, while the World Bank Group plans to mobilise $4.1bn in private capital for infrastructure and agribusiness.

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The Acting Country Director, World Bank, Taimur Samad, presented the CPF on Wednesday in Lagos during the Industrialisation & Competitiveness Forum organised by the Nigerian Economic Summit Group.

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The new framework seeks to create more and better private-sector jobs by improving the environment for competitiveness and growth, unlocking a more productive and healthier population, building resilience of people and ecosystems, and maximising private capital for infrastructure and agribusiness.

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The World Bank said the CPF will focus on job creation, private-sector-led growth and the mobilisation of private capital, with programmes covering distributed renewable energy, broadband infrastructure, access to finance for micro, small and medium enterprises and agribusiness.

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The fact sheet presented as part of the framework states, “32 million provided with electricity (M300). 58 million more people are using broadband internet (Digital). 9.5 million farmers benefiting from activities that improve production, value-addition, and market linkages (AgriConnect). $4.1bn in private capital mobilised.”

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The framework sets a broader goal of creating more and better private-sector jobs and identifies improved competitiveness and growth as one of its key outcomes.

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Under the competitiveness and growth objective, the World Bank targets a 30 per cent increase in the non-oil revenue-to-GDP ratio, $6bn in private capital enabled and an additional 250,000 SMEs using financial services.

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For human capital, the framework targets 40 million beneficiaries of quality health, nutrition and population services, 19.4 million students supported with better education and an eight-percentage-point reduction in the proportion of children under five suffering from stunting.

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It also targets 41 million additional beneficiaries of social safety-net programmes and 11.7 million people with enhanced resilience to climate risks.

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The World Bank said its new approach will concentrate support on fewer areas capable of producing large-scale and measurable results.

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The framework states, “A focus on jobs aligned with the World Bank Group Job Creation Strategy,” adding that the institution will double down on private-sector-led growth and private capital mobilisation.

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It also identifies distributed renewable energy, broadband infrastructure, MSME access to finance and agribusiness as areas for expanded support.

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The framework lists a $750m World Bank programme, alongside a $200m IFC facility, for distributed renewable energy to increase electricity access. It also includes a $500m programme for resilient digital infrastructure and another $500m pipeline programme for sustainable agricultural value chains.

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The new CPF builds on the World Bank Group’s existing engagement with Nigeria. The presentation said the previous CPF provided more than $12bn in support of national programmes, with emphasis on state-level and results-based financing.

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The World Bank currently has an active $15.9bn portfolio involving 30 projects in Nigeria, with two-thirds of the portfolio implemented through national programmes at the state level and half using results-based financing.

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The presentation said the World Bank had increased its average loan size from $415m in 2021 to $580m in 2025 while reducing the number of projects from 36 to 30.

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The new framework also provides for closer collaboration among the World Bank, International Finance Corporation and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, with annual business planning designed to provide flexibility.

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The World Bank said it will continue growing its engagement with states and maintain its focus on resilience, including climate adaptation, gender and work in conflict-affected areas.

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The CPF also identifies macroeconomic stability and governance, the business-enabling environment, early childhood development, social protection, human capital and skills development, digital transformation, power and energy access, climate resilience, agriculture and access to finance among its pathways for achieving the targeted outcomes.

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