The World Bank has approved an additional $65 million loan for Nigeria under the Sustainable Procurement, Environmental, and Social Standards Enhancement (SPESSE) project, bringing total funding for the initiative to $145 million.
According to information published on the World Bank’s website, the latest funding was approved on June 24, 2025. The SPESSE project, which began in 2021 following an initial $80 million loan approved in February 2020, aims to strengthen institutional capacity in managing procurement, environmental, and social standards across Nigeria’s public and private sectors.
“The project development objective is to develop sustainable capacity in managing procurement, environment, and social standards in the public and private sectors,” the World Bank stated.
The project’s status has now been updated to “active,” with the bank confirming that it has reached the “bank approved” stage.
In addition to the SPESSE financing, the World Bank is expected to approve more loans totalling approximately $1.61 billion for Nigeria in the coming months. A $300 million loan for the ‘Solutions for the Internally Displaced and Host Communities Project’ is currently in the negotiation phase and is expected to be finalised by July 31, 2025. The project aims to improve access to basic services and economic opportunities for internally displaced persons (IDPs) and host communities in targeted local government areas in northern Nigeria.
Further approvals are scheduled for September 2025. These include a $10.5 million loan for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Technical Assistance Facility, a $300 million loan for the Health Security Program in Western and Central Africa (Nigeria – Phase IV), and a $500 million loan for the Building Resilient Digital Infrastructure for Growth (BRIDGE) initiative. Additionally, in December 2025, the World Bank plans to approve a $500 million loan under the Nigeria Sustainable Agricultural Value-Chains for Growth Project, which seeks to promote sustainable development and job creation within key agricultural value chains.
Earlier this year, in March 2025, the World Bank approved financing of $1.13 billion for three other projects focusing on quality education, household and community resilience, and improved nutrition.
These new and upcoming loans form part of Nigeria’s broader engagement with the World Bank to accelerate economic reforms, support vulnerable populations, and drive inclusive growth.
Chioma Kalu
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