Ajay Banga Emphasizes Jobs, Smart Development, and Private Sector Partnership as Pillars of Global Growth

At the 2025 Annual Meetings Plenary, World Bank Group President Ajay Banga delivered a compelling address underscoring the urgency of inclusive global development through job creation, private sector collaboration, and smart, resilient growth models. His remarks marked a strategic shift in how development is measured and delivered — treating it not as charity but as strategy, and positioning jobs as the ultimate outcome of effective development.

Reimagining Development Around Jobs and Dignity

Banga highlighted that the world is undergoing one of the greatest demographic shifts in history.

“By 2050, more than 85% of the world’s population will live in countries we call developing today,” he said.
“In the next 10 to 15 years, 1.2 billion young people will enter the workforce—vying for roughly 400 million jobs.”

This, he warned, presents both an opportunity and a challenge. Without purposeful action, the optimism of youth could turn into despair, fueling instability and migration. To address this, job creation must sit at the heart of development, economic, and national security strategies.

Banga described jobs as more than paychecks — calling them “the anchor that holds families steady and the glue that keeps societies together.”

The World Bank Group’s Three-Pillar Strategy

Banga outlined a three-pillar approach to achieving large-scale job creation and sustainable growth:

1. Public Infrastructure and Human Capital:
   Governments must lead in building physical and human infrastructure — roads, ports, electricity, education, healthcare, and digitization. The Bank’s public arms (IBRD and IDA) finance these foundations and facilitate public-private partnerships.

2. Policy and Business Environment:
   A strong regulatory and fiscal environment — with secure land rights, predictable taxes, and transparent institutions — creates a fertile ground for investment. The World Bank and IMF jointly support these reforms through policy tools and performance-based financing.

3. Private Capital and Entrepreneurship:
   Once foundations are in place, IFC and MIGA enable private sector participation through capital, equity, and risk guarantees. Nearly 90% of global jobs come from the private sector, making it central to the Bank’s mission.

This integrated model — “foundation, policy, and capital” — converts ambition into tangible opportunities and ensures that development outcomes translate into livelihoods.

Sectors Powering the Next Phase of Growth

The World Bank Group identified five sectors with the highest potential for sustainable job creation:

• Infrastructure and energy

• Agribusiness

• Healthcare

• Tourism

• Value-added manufacturing, including critical minerals

Banga highlighted initiatives such as Mission 300, aimed at connecting 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030, and AgriConnect, which supports smallholder farmers through digital tools, financing, and market access. The Bank also pledged to double its agribusiness financing to $9 billion annually and mobilize an additional $5 billion.

He announced plans for a global healthcare summit in Tokyo, aimed at extending access to 1.5 billion people, citing Indonesia’s innovative model of providing annual healthcare checkups to all citizens as a benchmark.

Smart Development: Building Resilience and Trust

Banga emphasized that “smart development” means not just growth, but growth that lasts — development that is fiscally sound, climate-resilient, and institutionally strong.

“Many countries are trying to grow while facing droughts, floods, and fiscal fragility. Smart development means building both physical and institutional resilience,” he said.

Nearly 48% of the Bank’s financing now carries climate co-benefits, and 43% of public-sector projects directly enhance resilience. The Bank is also helping nations strengthen fiscal systems, manage debt, and combat corruption using AI, digital IDs, and data-driven tools.

Unlocking Private Capital for Development

To free up capital for emerging economies, the Bank is implementing new models to attract institutional investment. This includes:

• Expanding guarantees managed by MIGA with a goal to triple the business by 2030

• Increasing local currency lending to 40% by 2030

• Launching the Frontier Opportunities Fund for high-risk, high-impact ventures

• Introducing an originate-to-distribute model to securitize and channel global capital into developing markets

In a milestone move, the Bank completed its first transaction packaging $510 million of IFC loans into rated securities, signaling a new era of scalable private sector participation.

Results That Reflect Transformation

Since implementing its reform agenda, the World Bank Group has:

• Helped 20 million farmers gain market and technology access

• Enabled 60 million people to connect to electricity

• Supported 70 million individuals in education and skill programs

• Delivered quality healthcare and nutrition to 300 million people

Annual financing has grown to $119 billion, with private capital mobilization up to $67 billion.

“These are not just larger numbers,” Banga said. “They reflect a sharper focus and a mindset that treats development as strategy — and jobs as the ultimate measure of success.”

The Road Ahead

Banga’s closing message was rooted in human aspiration:

“A job is what happens when a school leads to a skill, when a road leads to a market, when a clinic keeps someone healthy enough to work, when energy powers a business.”

With its renewed focus on jobs, partnership, and smart development, the World Bank Group is not just rebuilding economies — it’s redefining the global development model to be inclusive, resilient, and sustainable.