Nigeria’s electricity sector has received at least $3.653 billion in World Bank-backed funding over the past 24 years, yet millions of households and businesses continue to face unstable power supply, frequent national grid collapses, and heavy reliance on generators.
An analysis of World Bank-supported power projects between 2001 and 2024 shows that successive interventions have focused on transmission upgrades, sector reforms, rural electrification, renewable energy expansion, and recovery programmes aimed at stabilising the country’s struggling electricity industry.
According to data from the World Bank, as reported by Statisense, the projects 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 in 2009.
Others include the $145 million Nigeria Power Sector Guarantees Project in 2014, the $486 million Nigeria Electricity Transmission Project and $350 million Nigeria Electrification Project in 2018, the $750 million Power Sector Recovery Programme 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 in 2024.
Despite the cumulative funding, Nigeria’s power supply has remained inadequate for its growing population and industrial needs. The national grid continues to suffer repeated collapses, while electricity generation still falls short of demand.
Many households and businesses across the country still rely heavily on petrol and diesel generators due to inconsistent electricity from the national grid.
Industry experts have attributed the ongoing crisis to weak transmission infrastructure, liquidity constraints in the power market, gas supply shortages, vandalism, inadequate investment, and policy inconsistencies.
Over the years, the World Bank’s approach has shifted from traditional transmission-focused projects toward renewable energy and decentralised electricity access initiatives.
Recent programmes such as the Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up initiative and the Sustainable Power and Irrigation for Nigeria project aim to expand solar-based electricity access, particularly in rural and underserved communities.
The World Bank has maintained that its interventions are designed to improve electricity access, strengthen the transmission network, and attract private investment into the sector.
However, concerns remain over implementation delays and the limited impact of the interventions on end users. Businesses continue to cite high energy costs as a major challenge, with many manufacturers spending heavily on self-generation due to unreliable grid supply.
Stakeholders say the continued reliance on donor-funded interventions highlights deep structural weaknesses in Nigeria’s power sector more than a decade after the privatisation of generation and distribution companies.