World Bank picks Ogunbiyi, 14 other CEOs to drive private sector investment

The World Bank has appointed the Chief Executive Officer of Sustainable Energy for All, Damilola Ogunbiyi and 14 other chief executive officers (CEOs) and chairs to join the Private Sector Investment Lab.

According to a statement by the bank, the Lab’s core members are leaders from AXA, BlackRock, HSBC, Macquarie, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Ninety One, Ping An Group, Royal Philips, Standard Bank, Standard Chartered, Tata Sons, Temasek and Three Cairns Group.

The Lab, the World Bank disclosed, will build on its current work to address existing barriers and develop solutions that support private sector investment in emerging markets.

The World Bank stated that the founding members comprise a core group charged with developing solutions to address the barriers to private sector investment in emerging markets.

According to the bank, the quality of their individual and combined expertise, leadership, and success in business and finance underscore the growing momentum and level of commitment for public and private collaboration to address global challenges and urgently scale development solutions.

The Lab will identify and focus on specific approaches that can be implemented and scaled by the World Bank to mobilise capital more effectively, with the ultimate goal of crowding in greater levels of private finance.

This includes ideas for improved financing structures, as well as ways to better align the World Bank with the needs and speed of private finance, approaches to balancing and allocating risks across investors and reimagine new partnerships.

The World Bank noted that the Lab will begin work in the coming weeks while focusing on scaling transition finance in renewable energy and energy infrastructure.

Co-chaired by UN Special Envoy on Climate Action and Finance and Co-Chair of GFANZ, Mark Carney and the Chair of Prudential plc, Shriti Vadera, the Lab will meet regularly and report directly to the World Bank Group President, Ajay Banga and World Bank Group leadership.

Reacting to the announcement, Ogunbiyi said the multiple ongoing global crises affect developing countries around the world disproportionally.

She said despite already having the solutions to scale up renewable energy-based solutions to deliver development and climate progress, finance needs to be unlocked at scale in developing countries and underserved sectors.

Ogunbiyi said the Lab offers the opportunity to work together to design solutions that will speed up an inclusive global energy transition.