World Bank Group Expands Private Sector Investment Lab to Accelerate Job Creation in Developing Economies

WASHINGTON / ISLAMABAD — In a strategic move to catalyze job creation and economic transformation across developing nations, the World Bank Group today announced the launch of the next phase of its Private Sector Investment Lab (PSIL). With an expanded focus on implementing proven solutions at scale, the Lab is also welcoming new industry leaders whose expertise lies in sectors critical to employment generation.

The initiative aligns directly with the Bank Group’s refined development strategy that places job creation at the heart of poverty reduction and inclusive growth. World Bank Group President Ajay Banga emphasized the importance of private investment in fulfilling this vision.

“With the expanded membership, we are mainstreaming this work across our operations and tying it directly to the jobs agenda that is driving our strategy,” Banga said. “This isn’t about altruism—it’s about helping the private sector see a path to investments that will deliver returns, and lift people and economies alike. It’s central to our mandate.”

Over the past 18 months, the Lab has convened global financial leaders to dissect the barriers to private sector investment in emerging markets. From that work, five critical areas of intervention have emerged as priority tracks, now being embedded across the World Bank Group’s operations:

Regulatory and Policy Certainty: Providing clear and stable regulatory environments to unlock long-term investment, particularly in sectors like energy access.

Political Risk Insurance: Expanding the use of guarantees to mitigate investor concerns, with a 30% increase in issuance over the past year alone.

Foreign Exchange Risk Mitigation: Scaling up local currency financing to deepen domestic capital markets, with the IFC aiming to raise its share of local currency financing from one-third to 40% by 2030.

Junior Equity Capital: Launching the Frontier Opportunities Fund to de-risk early-stage investments, supported initially by IFC income and additional donor contributions.

Securitization: Collaborating with institutions such as S&P and BlackRock to create standardized, securitized investment products that can attract institutional capital.

With this new phase, the Lab’s membership is being broadened to include business leaders from high-impact sectors such as infrastructure, agriculture, tourism, manufacturing, and healthcare—industries recognized for their ability to scale employment rapidly.

Among the new members announced are Bill Anderson, CEO of Bayer AG; Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chair of Bharti Enterprises; Aliko Dangote, President and CEO of Dangote Group; and Mark Hoplamazian, CEO of Hyatt Hotels Corporation.

“We are grateful to the original Lab leaders who helped us deliver strong results in the initial work period,” Banga noted. “Now we’re building on that foundation—bringing in additional leaders from sectors that are central to job creation and moving from ideas to implementation.”

The Lab’s founding members included senior executives from AXA, BlackRock, HSBC, Macquarie, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Ninety One, Ping An Group, Royal Philips, Standard Bank, Standard Chartered, Sustainable Energy for All, Tata Sons, Temasek, and Three Cairns Group. The initiative is chaired by Shriti Vadera, Chair of Prudential plc.

Vadera reaffirmed the Lab’s commitment to its five core focus areas and praised the expansion: “We are grateful to the Lab leaders who helped deliver such important results in the first phase. We welcome our new members’ support in continuing our focus on regulatory certainty, political risk guarantees, managing FX risk, scaling equity, and building markets to attract institutional investors.”

Sunil Bharti Mittal echoed these sentiments, stating: “I am delighted to join the PSIL alongside other distinguished business leaders. I have seen firsthand the power of connectivity to transform lives by creating opportunities for businesses to grow and communities to thrive.”

Bill Anderson of Bayer added, “Together, businesses and the WBG can unleash job creation in emerging markets by managing the risks and realizing the opportunities for the next generation growing up in low and middle-income countries.”

The expansion of the Private Sector Investment Lab marks a pivotal step in the World Bank Group’s commitment to leveraging private capital for sustainable development and underscores the growing consensus that the private sector has a vital role to play in global job creation and economic resilience.