WASHINGTON, D.C., October 21, 2025 – The World Bank (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, IBRD, Aaa/AAA) today priced a USD 5 billion benchmark bond that matures in October 2030.
With more than 165 investor orders, the transaction attracted over USD 11 billion high-quality investor orders, primarily driven by bank treasuries, central banks/official institutions, and asset managers.
Continue readingMARRAKECH, February 18, 2025 – Road safety financing faces a critical shortfall, hindering progress toward halving global road traffic fatalities and injuries by 2030. Each year, road crashes claim an estimated 1.19 million lives, leave countless others with permanent disabilities, and impose significant economic costs.
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Are you interested in contributing to Ukraine’s reconstruction and looking for financial opportunities? Then join our information session on international financing options for reconstruction on 13 February 2025. We will inform you about the opportunities that international financial institutions (IFIs) can offer you.
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Informatiebijeenkomst internationale financieringsopties voor wederopbouwprojecten in Oekraïne
Continue readingNew Equity-to-Loans Ratio and other measures could enable $150 bln over 10 years
WASHINGTON, October 15, 2024—The World Bank Group announced on Tuesday a package of financial measures that will boost lending capacity and make loans from the International Bank of Reconstruction and Development more affordable at a time of immense development need. Combined with previous reforms, the package could enable more than $150 billion in additional financing over 10 years.
Two key elements announced today are:
“These new financial measures will boost our lending capacity and enable us to drive meaningful change in the lives of people. Our Equity-to-Loans change is the latest step of sustained effort, and whenever we are able to responsibly secure additional optimization to IBRD’s balance sheet – we will,” said World Bank Group President Ajay Banga.
IBRD was able to secure an additional percent reduction in its Equity-to-Loans ratio because of new protections that safeguard its triple-A rating. These include a strengthened IBRD credit rating monitoring system with contingency measures to restore IBRD’s financial health in a stress event. Contingency measures include cutting costs, adjusting lending volumes, raising loan prices, suspending income transfers, and possibly additional shareholder support.
In a move to better serve countries and ease costs, financing term changes include introducing a grace period for paying commitment fees on undisbursed balances, removing the pre-payment premium to widen clients’ repayment options, introducing discounted pricing for short maturity loans with a final maturity of seven years, and extending IBRD’s lowest pricing to more vulnerable, small states.
The latest package includes a new way to enhance the value of callable capital, part of stakeholders’ capital that can be called on in extreme circumstances. In a first for development banks, this Enhanced Callable Capital is a portion of callable capital that can be leveraged like equity and called on earlier if the Bank’s rating is under pressure. Shareholders can now sign up for this instrument.
The World Bank Group has implemented a series of reforms and developed innovative financial instruments as part of the Capital Adequacy Framework review, which was recommended by the G20 Expert Group. These reforms include:
PRESS RELEASE NO: 2025/023/MDCFO
In Washington:
David Young
(202) 473-4691
dyoung7@worldbankgroup.org
In spite of a commendable decline in stunting rates over the past 30 years, 148 million children 
worldwide remain stunted. The condition impairs their growth, health, development, and education and has long-term consequences for their future wellbeing.
In just 15 years, Rwanda has increased its electricity access to 75% from 6% in 2009. This took government ownership, leadership, and commitment, partnership with the private sector, funding from development partners, and dedicated structure and institutional strengthening.
The goal of lighting up every household is not a dream, but an achievable reality. In a remarkable 15-year journey, Rwanda increased access to electricity to households from 6% in 2009 to 75% as of March 2024. The country has connected 100% of health centers and administrative facilities at the sector level and 84% of schools and most productive users (micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises). This electrification expansion was one of the fastest in the world between 2010 and 2020, ranking 11th globally and 3rd in Africa.
Government ownership, leadership, and commitment to universal electrification. Since 2008, the Government of Rwanda (GoR) has been intentional in engraining electrification targets in its development strategies. The Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy 1 (EDPRS1 2008-2012) set out targets for electricity connections from 70,000 to 200,000 households, and for institutions providing social and administrative services from 50% to 80%. Likewise, both the EDPRS2 (2013-2018), and the National Strategy for Transformation 1 (2017-2024) set a universal electrification target by 2024.
Continue readingPlatform will revolutionize the landscape of development financing
WASHINGTON, July 1, 2024 – Starting today, the World Bank Group (WBG) guarantee platform is open for business. The platform, housed at the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), brings together products and experts from the World Bank, International Finance Corporation (IFC), and MIGA for simplicity, efficiency, and speed. It aims to boost WBG annual guarantee issuance to $20 billion by 2030.
WBG Guarantees will serve as a one-stop-shop for all WBG guarantee business, providing the best guarantee solutions for clients to meet project needs and development priorities. WBG clients can now choose from a simplified market-friendly menu of guarantee options. The platform will provide three types of coverages: credit guarantees for loans to the public or private sector; trade finance guarantees for trade finance projects involving public entities; and political risk insurance against non-commercial risks for private sector projects or public-private partnerships.
“MIGA is excited to host and begin the operationalization of the guarantee platform. This marks a pivotal moment in our commitment to sustainable economic development,” said Hiroshi Matano, MIGA Executive Vice President. “We aim to leverage the World Bank Group’s collective expertise and knowledge of guarantee business to usher the WBG into a new era of partnership with the private sector, catalyzing foreign investment in emerging markets and developing economies.”
A major priority during the WBG’s recent evolution process was enabling and catalyzing private capital flows, underscoring the effectiveness of guarantees. The G20 Independent Expert Group’s report on Strengthening Multilateral Development Banks called for expanded use of guarantees to mitigate risk and unlock private finance. And the Private Sector Investment Lab, launched by the WBG in June 2023 to identify barriers and solutions for private sector investment in emerging markets, provided specific guidance on using guarantee instruments.
The platform’s transformative solution is set to revolutionize the landscape of development financing, revitalizing the role of guarantees in development and aligning with the overall effort to mobilize private capital for development. It complements the World Bank’s country-level support in creating an environment supportive to private capital mobilization. This collaboration is supported by IFC’s advisory and financial instruments to enhance private sector engagement with country clients.
The new platform introduces a scalable model, prioritizing high-impact projects, thereby optimizing resource allocation, and facilitating growth. Leveraging the collective expertise of the WBG, the platform will drive impactful solutions across diverse sectors, including energy access, pandemic preparedness, and climate action. Through collaborative efforts and innovative financing systems, the platform is set to drive sustainable development and promote inclusive growth worldwide.
In fiscal year 2024, the World Bank Group issued approximately $10.3 billion in new guarantees using products that will be part of the platform: $8.2 billion from MIGA, $1.4 billion from IFC, and nearly $700 million from the World Bank.
About World Bank Group Guarantees
Initiated in 2024, World Bank Group Guarantees consolidates all guarantee products and experts from across the World Bank Group institutions at MIGA. It provides a simplified and comprehensive menu of guarantee solutions, enabling clients to select the instrument that best suits their needs. The platform streamlines processes, removes redundancies, and provides greater accessibility by de-risking investments in developing countries. Its goal is to boost the WBG’s annual guarantee issuance to $20 billion by 2030.
For more information about the guarantee platform, please visit: https://www.worldbank.org/wbgguarantees
Stay updated and follow us at https://twitter.com/MIGA and https://www.linkedin.com/company/wb-miga
Contact:
In Washington: Elizabeth Howton, (202) 458-5922 or ehowton@worldbankgroup.org
Utilities around the world are looking to innovate digital solutions. To respond to this, the 
World Bank Water Global Practice has created a new knowledge and technical assistance platform called “Digital Water,” to transform water and supply and sanitation utilities into smart-enabled organizations. Digital Water offers digital maturity assessments, trainings, and knowledge products to support specific project components and help operators modernize and improve their performance.
Our goal at the World Bank is to end poverty on a livable planet. As part of that mission, it is 
critical that we understand both the current state and evolution of the associated challenges, so as to inform policies that raise the standard of living of people in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), where poverty and inequality impact millions. Our new Regional Poverty and Inequality Update leverages the latest data and provides an in-depth analysis of these critical challenges within LAC. It offers detailed insights about the evolving landscape of poverty and inequality that can guide informed decisions for future action.
Netherlands for the World Bank 
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