Despite receiving more than $3.65 billion in World Bank-backed funding over the last 24 years, Nigeria continues to struggle with unreliable electricity supply, frequent national grid collapses, and widespread dependence on generators for power.
An analysis of World Bank-supported electricity projects between 2001 and 2024 shows that billions of dollars have been invested in transmission infrastructure, power sector reforms, rural electrification, renewable energy programmes, and recovery initiatives aimed at improving the country’s electricity sector.
According to World Bank data compiled by Statisense, major interventions include the $100 million Transmission Development Project launched in 2001, the $172 million National Energy Development Project in 2005, and the $400 million Nigeria Electricity and Gas Improvement Project introduced in 2009.
Other projects include 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 in the same year, the $750 million Power Sector Recovery Programme approved in 2020, the $750 million Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up Programme in 2023, and the $500 million Sustainable Power and Irrigation for Nigeria Project introduced in 2024.
Together, these projects account for approximately $3.653 billion in funding, excluding some regional electricity and hydro-related projects whose financial details were not disclosed.
Despite these interventions, electricity supply across the country remains inadequate. Millions of homes and businesses still rely heavily on petrol and diesel generators due to unstable power from the national grid. Power generation has remained below national demand, while repeated grid failures continue to disrupt economic activities.
Industry experts attribute the sector’s challenges to weak transmission infrastructure, inadequate investment, liquidity problems in the electricity market, gas supply shortages, vandalism, and policy inconsistencies.
Over the years, the World Bank’s approach has gradually shifted from funding traditional transmission and gas-related projects to supporting renewable energy and decentralised electricity access. Recent programmes focus on expanding solar-powered electricity, especially in rural and underserved communities.
Although the World Bank says these projects are intended to improve electricity access, strengthen transmission networks, and attract private investment, many stakeholders believe implementation challenges have limited their impact.
Businesses across the country continue to cite poor electricity supply as a major obstacle, with manufacturers spending huge amounts on self-generation to keep operations running.
The prolonged electricity crisis has also affected healthcare delivery, small businesses, productivity, and living standards, raising questions about the effectiveness of reforms more than a decade after the privatisation of power generation and distribution companies.
In a recent development, the Federal Government cancelled $717.7 million in undisbursed World Bank funding under the Power Sector Recovery Programme.
Documents obtained from the World Bank showed that the cancellation followed a request by the Nigerian government and a joint decision by both parties to discontinue the programme after several reform targets were not achieved.
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The cancelled amount represented the entire balance remaining under the facility. The World Bank also shortened the programme’s closing date from June 30, 2027, to May 31, 2026, effectively ending it more than a year earlier than planned.
Reacting to the development, a Professor of Energy at the University of Lagos, Dayo Ayoade, blamed corruption, poor governance, and inefficiencies for the sector’s persistent problems.
According to him, Nigeria’s economy will continue to suffer unless the government takes stronger control of the power sector and addresses structural issues.
Ayoade argued that self-generation is not a sustainable solution because it is expensive and inefficient for households and businesses.
He called for comprehensive reforms, including the removal of electricity subsidies, cost-reflective tariffs, stronger governance structures, and measures to tackle corruption and financial leakages in the sector.
The professor stressed that billions of dollars had been invested in electricity projects over the years without corresponding improvements in power supply, adding that unless accountability and transparency improve, the country’s electricity challenges will remain unresolved.
