The World Bank Group has announced plans to significantly expand its guarantee support for Africa, targeting annual issuance of up to $6.4 billion by 2030 through its Guarantee Platform.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the institution said the initiative is expected to positively impact at least 190 million people over the next four years by unlocking greater private sector investment across the continent.
The Guarantee Platform serves as a centralised system that brings together all guarantee and risk insurance instruments offered across the World Bank Group.
Hosted by the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), the platform integrates expertise and products from the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and MIGA into a single access point for investors.
It is designed to simplify processes by allowing investors to access multiple guarantee products through one channel, reducing duplication and improving efficiency in project approvals.
The system also aims to reduce investment risks, thereby encouraging private lenders to finance key development projects in emerging economies.
The statement noted that Africa’s working-age population is projected to increase by about 740 million over the next 30 years, with an estimated 12 million young people entering the workforce annually.
It added that guarantees would help attract private capital into sectors such as agriculture, energy, infrastructure, healthcare, digital services, finance, and trade, all of which are expected to generate employment opportunities.
According to the World Bank, the initiative is expected to mobilise around $23 billion in private investment for Africa over the next four years through various development programmes.
Key initiatives include AgriConnect, aimed at boosting smallholder farming, creating jobs, and strengthening food security, as well as Mission 300, a partnership involving the World Bank, African Development Bank, The Rockefeller Foundation, Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, and Sustainable Energy for All, which seeks to provide electricity access to 300 million Africans by 2030.
The statement further projected that the guarantees could help deliver electricity access to 43 million people, improve financial inclusion for 50 million individuals and businesses—particularly women-owned enterprises—and enhance food and nutrition security for about five million people.
It also stated that 51 million people are expected to benefit from digital services, 37 million from broadband internet access, and three million from improved transport infrastructure and services.
Managing Director of MIGA, Tsutomu Yamamoto, was quoted as saying that Africa’s young and expanding workforce presents a major opportunity, stressing that guarantees are essential to attracting investment needed to create sustainable jobs.
He added that the programme aims to support stronger and more stable economies that can generate quality employment across multiple sectors including agriculture, healthcare, energy, and infrastructure.
The World Bank Group also explained that the Guarantee Platform, launched in 2024, consolidates guarantee products and expertise within MIGA to make access easier and more efficient for investors.
It added that the broader objective is to increase global annual guarantee issuance to $20 billion by 2030 as part of efforts to scale up development financing.