The World Bank Group mobilised a record volume of private capital in its 2026 financial year, with financing directed to Africa rising more than 150% over four years to $22 billion, as the institution steps up efforts to draw private investors into development projects across the continent.
The Washington-based development institution said its public- and private-sector arms mobilised the highest amount of private investment in its history and issued a record volume of guarantees.
Together, the efforts helped generate more than $200 billion in financing and investment mobilisation for developing economies worldwide.
“The results reflect three years of changes across the World Bank Group to work more effectively with the private sector: becoming faster and simpler, bringing the public and private sides of the institution closer together, and expanding the tools available to investors,” the bank said in a statement.
The increase in financing for Africa reflects a broader shift in development finance as governments and institutions seek to use public resources to unlock larger pools of private capital.
The World Bank Group is combining development finance, private-sector investment, advisory services and risk-mitigation instruments to support projects that require substantial long-term funding.
The strategy comes as African governments face major infrastructure and investment gaps while dealing with debt-servicing pressures, climate risks and limited fiscal space.
Traditional public financing alone is increasingly constrained, raising the importance of structures that can attract institutional investors and private companies into projects across sectors.
A central part of the World Bank Group’s reform programme has been closer integration of its public- and private-sector activities at country level.
Governments and investors can engage with a wider range of financing, advisory and risk-management tools through a more unified country framework.
The institution has also begun developing integrated country strategies based on individual national development priorities.
The objective is to identify sectors where private capital can complement public financing and support economic growth, infrastructure development and other long-term investment needs.
Guarantees have become an important tool in this effort. By providing political-risk insurance and other forms of credit enhancement, the World Bank Group seeks to reduce risks that could otherwise deter private investors from entering developing markets.
The group comprises the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), which provides financing to middle-income and creditworthy lower-income countries, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which invests in the private sector and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), which provides political-risk insurance and credit-enhancement products to investors.
For Africa, the mobilisation of private capital is particularly significant as governments seek financing for infrastructure, energy, climate resilience and economic development without placing the full burden on public balance sheets.
The World Bank Group maintains that governments and development-finance institutions cannot meet the financing needs of developing economies on their own.
Its approach is therefore increasingly focused on using its balance sheet, guarantees and private-sector capabilities to bring additional investors into development projects.
The rise in African financing to $22 billion, from a level more than 150% lower four years ago, highlights the growing role of private capital in the institution’s development strategy.
The broader challenge will be converting that mobilisation into projects capable of reaching financial close and delivering infrastructure, businesses, employment and economic growth across the continent.
