PRETORIA, July 21 – South Africa has secured a $1.5 billion loan from the World Bank to speed up reforms in electricity, transport, water and sanitation, as the country works to improve infrastructure, boost economic growth and create jobs.
The funding, provided through the World Bank’s International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), is the fourth stand-alone loan the country has received from the lender since 2022. It is also the first to include support for water and sanitation reforms alongside ongoing work in the energy and transport sectors.
Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said the programme reflects the government’s commitment to removing infrastructure challenges that have slowed economic growth and job creation. He added that the partnership with the World Bank would also address long-standing investment and governance gaps in the water sector.
South Africa’s economy has expanded by less than 1% a year on average over the past decade, while power shortages, rising electricity costs and transport bottlenecks have weighed on business activity.
The latest programme builds on reforms already underway. According to the World Bank, load shedding has largely been eliminated over the past 18 months, private investment in renewable energy has increased sixfold, and freight volumes through rail and ports have risen by more than 50% since 2023.
The new funding will support the launch of a competitive wholesale electricity market, expand private investment in transmission infrastructure and help connect an additional 300,000 households to the national power grid by the end of 2027. It also backs greater private participation in rail services, reforms in port operations and stronger oversight of the water sector.
The World Bank expects the programme to support nearly 600,000 jobs by 2032 while attracting more private investment into key infrastructure projects.
