Nigeria’s power sector got $3.65bn from World Bank in 24 years, but light still fails
By Aboki Forex —
Nigeria’s electricity sector has received at least $3.653 billion in World Bank-backed funding over the past 24 years. Despite this, millions of households and businesses still face unstable power supply, frequent grid collapses, and heavy reliance on generators.
An analysis of World Bank-supported power projects between 2001 and 2024 shows that successive interventions targeted transmission upgrades, sector reforms, rural electrification, renewable energy expansion, and recovery programmes. The goal was to stabilise the country’s troubled electricity industry.
According to data from the World Bank, as reported by Statisense, the projects include:
- The $100 million Transmission Development Project in 2001.
- The $172 million National Energy Development Project in 2005.
- The $400 million Nigeria Electricity and Gas Improvement Project in 2009.
- The $145 million Nigeria Power Sector Guarantees Project in 2014.
- The $486 million Nigeria Electricity Transmission Project in 2018.
- The $350 million Nigeria Electrification Project, also in 2018.
- The $750 million Power Sector Recovery Programme in 2020.
- The $750 million Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up programme in 2023.
- The $500 million Sustainable Power and Irrigation for Nigeria project in 2024.
Yet, families still await the return of abducted Oyo pupils. The power sector remains a national headache.