World Bank Plans Electricity Access for 32 Million Nigerians by 2032

The World Bank has unveiled an ambitious plan to connect 32 million Nigerians to electricity and provide an additional 58 million people with access to broadband internet by 2032.

The targets are contained in the World Bank Group’s new Country Partnership Framework for Nigeria, covering the period from 2026 to 2032.

The framework is designed to support economic growth, create more private-sector jobs, strengthen human capital and attract greater private investment into critical sectors of the Nigerian economy.

The Acting Country Director of the World Bank, Taimur Samad, presented the new framework on Wednesday in Lagos at the Industrialisation and Competitiveness Forum organised by the Nigerian Economic Summit Group.

Under the plan, about 9.5 million farmers are expected to benefit from programmes aimed at increasing agricultural production, improving value addition and strengthening access to markets.

The World Bank Group also plans to mobilise $4.1 billion in private capital for infrastructure and agribusiness projects.

The World Bank said its new strategy would focus on areas capable of delivering large-scale and measurable results, with particular emphasis on job creation, private-sector-led growth and private capital mobilisation.

Key areas of intervention include distributed renewable energy, broadband infrastructure, financing for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, and agricultural value chains.

According to the framework, the electricity programme is expected to provide access to 32 million people, while 58 million additional Nigerians will gain access to broadband internet.

The agricultural component is expected to support 9.5 million farmers, while $4.1 billion in private capital will be mobilised.

The framework also sets targets for improving Nigeria’s competitiveness. These include a 30 per cent increase in the non-oil revenue-to-GDP ratio, enabling $6 billion in private capital and supporting an additional 250,000 small and medium-sized businesses with access to financial services.

Human capital development is another major component of the plan.

The World Bank aims to reach 40 million people through improved health, nutrition and population services, while 19.4 million students are expected to benefit from better education programmes.

The institution also plans to reduce the rate of stunting among children under five by eight percentage points and extend social safety-net programmes to an additional 41 million beneficiaries.

In response to growing climate-related challenges, the framework targets 11.7 million people for enhanced resilience to climate risks.

The World Bank said it would continue supporting climate adaptation, gender-related initiatives and programmes in conflict-affected communities.

To expand electricity access, the framework includes a $750 million World Bank programme and a $200 million facility from the International Finance Corporation for distributed renewable energy.

Another $500 million programme is earmarked for resilient digital infrastructure, while a further $500 million pipeline programme will support sustainable agricultural value chains.

The new framework builds on the World Bank Group’s previous partnership with Nigeria, which provided more than $12 billion in support for national development programmes, with significant emphasis on state-level and results-based financing.

The World Bank currently has an active portfolio of about $15.9 billion covering 30 projects in Nigeria. According to the presentation, about two-thirds of the portfolio is implemented through national programmes at the state level, while half of the projects use results-based financing.

The institution has also increased its average loan size from $415 million in 2021 to $580 million in 2025, while reducing the number of active projects from 36 to 30.

The new partnership framework will strengthen collaboration between the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency.

The World Bank said the approach would allow greater flexibility in responding to Nigeria’s development priorities through annual business planning.

The framework identifies macroeconomic stability and governance, an improved business environment, early childhood development, social protection, human capital and skills development, digital transformation, energy access, climate resilience, agriculture and access to finance as key pathways for achieving its objectives.

Overall, the World Bank said the new partnership would focus on creating better opportunities for Nigerians, expanding access to essential services and encouraging private investment to support sustainable economic growth.