The Federal Government is seeking $1.5bn in fresh financing from the World Bank to fund social protection, early childhood development and climate resilience programmes.
Documents obtained from the multilateral lender show that the proposed financing comprises three separate $500m facilities targeting climate resilience, social protection, and early childhood development.
The three facilities are each valued at $500m and are at different stages of preparation.
The earliest of the proposed loans is an additional $500m credit for the Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes project, known as ACReSAL.
The World Bank is scheduled to present the facility to its board for consideration on October 29, 2026.
The proposed financing would expand the existing $700m ACReSAL project approved in December 2021.
If approved, total World Bank financing for the programme would rise to $1.2bn.
According to the project appraisal document, the Federal Government requested the additional financing “to scale up demonstrated project results” and strengthen institutional and financing arrangements.
The proposed $500m facility includes $310m for dryland management, $165m for community climate resilience and $25m for institutional strengthening and project management.
ACReSAL operates across 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The programme targets land degradation, water insecurity, climate vulnerability and declining agricultural productivity.
Another $500m facility is being proposed for Nigeria’s Early Childhood Development programme.
The programme is expected to provide integrated services for children aged zero to five and their caregivers across the 36 states and the FCT.
The services will cover health, nutrition, early learning, childcare and related interventions.
The World Bank said 40 per cent of Nigerian children under five are stunted, while fewer than half are developmentally on track.
It also stated that only 36 per cent of children aged between 36 and 59 months attend organised early learning.
The third facility is the $500m Household Prosperity and Empowerment–Social Protection Project, known as HOPE-SP.
The project is designed to strengthen social assistance for poor and vulnerable households through targeted conditional and unconditional cash transfers.
It will also strengthen social protection institutions and gradually shift funding from external sources to Federal and state government budgets.
The World Bank estimates that 62.5 per cent of Nigerians could be living in poverty in 2026, compared with 40 per cent in 2019 and 56 per cent in 2023.
The proposed Early Childhood Development and HOPE-SP facilities are scheduled for board consideration in March 2027.
All three proposed facilities would be financed through credits from the World Bank’s International Development Association.
However, the proposed facilities are still at the preparation stage and are not yet approved loans.
If approved as scheduled, the three facilities would add $1.5bn to Nigeria’s World Bank-backed financing pipeline.
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