With the 21st “replenishment pledging” conference by the International Development Association (IDA) opening Thursday, December 5, in Seoul, South Korea, leaders across Africa call for global cooperation to address the intertwined crises of poverty, climate change, and economic inequity.
The association hopes to spend $120 billion in addressing urgent global needs, and will bolster the ability of the world’s poorest countries to recover from crises and build long-term resilience. It will also streamline policies to address key issues such as people, the planet, infrastructure, digitalization, jobs, gender empowerment, and fragility.
Dirk Reinermann, Director of IDA Mobilisation at the World Bank, said IDA has further reduced its policy commitments from 1,017 in IDA20 to a much more manageable number in IDA21 to help recipient nations thrive.
“We’ve streamlined IDA’s commitments, cutting policies by half to ensure agility and reduce unnecessary burdens on recipient nations,” said Reinermann. “The proposed financial framework reflects the urgency and scale of the challenges we face, and we look forward to ambitious pledges from our donor partners.”
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This conversation comes at a time when African leaders, who convened earlier this year in Nairobi, issued a collective call for donors to match the growing scale of need with bold financial commitments.
“We’re optimistic about a robust package. Some donors have already indicated significant increases, while others, constrained by fiscal policies, may remain nominally flat in their contributions. However, local currency contributions in euros, yen, and renminbi are substantial. The strength of the dollar might mask these ePorts when converted,” Reinermann said.
Since its establishment in 1960, IDA has committed $533 billion to foster economic growth and improve lives, with more than 70 per cent of its global commitments directed toward Africa. These investments have supported critical sectors such as infrastructure, education, healthcare, digitalization, and climate resilience.
According to Daouda Sembene, Founder and CEO of Africatalyst, IDA’s pivotal role as a development partner ought to be seen not just as a concessional resource provider but as a partner “working alongside borrower countries” to address global challenges. He said: “These challenges are not just for Africa—they are challenges for the whole world. At the same time, it’s crucial to ensure that Africa has the fiscal space to meet its domestic priorities.”
Besides increasing its financial contributions, IDA is broadening its funding base by engaging non-traditional funders, including private sector actors, philanthropists, and emerging economies. This expansion aims to create a more resilient and sustainable financing model that is better equipped to meet the scale and urgency of global development challenges. There is a strong emphasis on private sector resource mobilization and domestic resource mobilization in recipient countries. Will IDA remain true to the call of focusing on poverty alleviation?
IDA places a strong focus on civil society engagement. This year alone, it has worked out eight regional forums, including one in Nairobi, to help shape its policy package. Furthermore, a new World Bank Group scorecard will track and ensure the quality and consistency of these engagements, guaranteeing that civil society plays a central role in shaping the development agenda moving forward.
“When you invest in the productive capacities of developing nations, you’re addressing multiple challenges simultaneously. Even modest investments can leverage funds up to four times their value,” Trevor Lwere, Economic and Policy Analyst at Development Reimagined, said.
