NIGERIA benefitted $2b in funds and support from the International Finance Corporation, which is a member of the World Bank Group, whose focus is on the private sector in emerging markets and developing economies.
This places the country among the top 10 countries with the highest exposure to funds and support from the group, ranking sixth.
This was contained in the IFC Annual Report 2021: Meeting the Moment.
According to the report, as of June 30, India led the list of countries with a benefit of $6.91b, accounting for 10.77 per cent of the global portfolio. China with a benefit of $4.75b accounted for 7.40 per cent while Turkey with a benefit of $4.44b accounted for 6.92 per cent.
Brazil was fourth with a benefit of $3.68b, accounting for 5.75 per cent, while South Africa was fifth with a benefit of $2.49b, accounting for 3.89 per cent.
Nigeria was sixth with a benefit of $2b, accounting for 3.12 per cent, while Colombia was seventh with a benefit of $1.76b, accounting for 2.75 per cent.
Vietnam was eighth with a benefit of $1.67b, accounting for 2.60 per cent; Mexico was ninth with a benefit of $1.59b, accounting for 2.48 per cent; and Indonesia was tenth with a benefit of $1.53b, accounting for 2.38 per cent.
In the fiscal year 2021, IFC invested $31.5bn in total commitments, including $23.3b in long-term finance and $8.2b in short-term finance to private companies and financial institutions in emerging and developing economies, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity.
IFC has been supporting programmes in Nigeria, particularly in the private sector.
For instance, IFC has helped in the production of face masks and other personal protective equipment, the report stated.
“IFC’s Global PPE Advisory Programme, launched in 2021, provides hands-on support to manufacturers in emerging markets (Ethiopia, Jordan, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam) that are pivoting to produce PPE,” the report read.
It also added that IFC was helping to ensure access to fast, accurate COVID-19 tests in Nigeria and some Sub-Saharan countries.
The report said, “In most wealthy countries, getting a COVID-19 test is routine.
“But in many parts of Africa, these diagnostics, one of the first lines of defence against the novel coronavirus, remain hard to come by.”
“As of August 2021, the continent, home to 1.1 billion people, had conducted about 47 million COVID-19 tests; the United States alone administered nearly 10 times that figure. “The paucity of tests has left patients in the lurch and public health officials trying to fight the pandemic blindfolded,” the report added.
