Priming the pump

Targeted support from a multilateral institution can result in substantial commercial and developmental rewards, says Olivier Mussat of the World Bank Group’s IFC

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) makes private sector projects happen in the world’s most challenging countries. While its parent, the World Bank, provides funding to government ministries to build institutional capacity and infrastructure, the IFC supports the private sector by leveraging its capital to make projects commercially viable. The IFC manages $58bn, including $14.6bn dedicated to infrastructure. Energy is the most important component of infrastructure, with $1.2bn focused on upstream and midstream projects but the lion’s share of $6.9bn on the power sector, as it more effectively fulfils its development goals. While these figures are not huge in an oil and gas context,