800 million jobs at risk over 15 years? World Bank's Ajay Banga calls for global financing overhaul
World Bank President Ajay Banga has warned of a projected shortfall of nearly 800 million jobs over the next 10 to 15 years, calling for a shift in global development financing to create employment opportunities for a rapidly growing young population.
Addressing the World Bank Group's 2026 Annual Meeting plenary in Bangkok, Banga said around 1.2 billion young people would enter the global workforce over the next decade and a half, while only 400 million jobs were projected to become available.
"The jobs gap is a projection. It does not have to be our future," Banga said, outlining a strategy combining public finance, private investment, philanthropy and technology to accelerate economic development.
\He said persistent conflicts, rising debt burdens, limited fiscal space and elevated energy and fertiliser costs were adding to the challenges facing developing economies.
The World Bank plans to increase its critical minerals business fivefold over the next five years and has identified 20 countries for potential partnerships on development projects, Banga said on Friday.
"In critical minerals, we plan to quintuple our business in five years," Banga said. “This week, we launched our first country compacts with MDB partners—to build local industries and keep more jobs and value at home.”
The institution's new Metals and Minerals implementation plan targets $19 billion in critical minerals financing over fiscal 2026-2030, compared with $3.6 billion during fiscal 2021-2025.
The initiative comes amid calls from the United States, the World Bank's largest shareholder, for the institution to devote more resources to critical minerals mining and processing.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said earlier this week that he wanted the bank to play a bigger role in expanding mining and processing capacity through project de-risking, financing and investment in supporting infrastructure. He also referred to deep-sea mining projects.
Banga did not mention deep-sea mining in his remarks. The bank's metals plan, however, calls for a "precautionary approach" to the emerging sector, stating that any engagement and investments must comply with applicable bank policies.
Banga said the World Bank had undertaken institutional reforms since he assumed office in June 2023 to increase lending capacity, streamline operations and attract private investment.
Project preparation time has been reduced from 19 months to nine months, while the institution's performance indicators have been cut from 153 to 22.
The reforms have also generated more than $100 billion in additional lending capacity for the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development over a decade.
Private capital mobilisation rose to $112 billion in fiscal 2026, which ended on 30 June, from approximately $35 billion in fiscal 2022. Combined with financing from the World Bank Group's own balance sheet, total financing reached $230 billion, Banga said.
India was among the leading sources of private investment mobilised by the institution.
"Last year, we mobilised capital from investors in 110 countries. The United States, United Kingdom, and India led the way," Banga said.
However, attracting commercial investment into the poorest economies remains difficult. Private capital mobilisation in low-income countries has remained around $3 billion, Banga said.
He added that the institution was placing greater emphasis on micro, small and medium enterprises, particularly in fragile and conflict-affected economies where large companies often have limited operations.
The World Bank committed $40 billion last year to infrastructure, healthcare, education and skills development. Around 30% of its public-sector financing supported policy and institutional reforms.
Banga also highlighted artificial intelligence as a potential development tool, saying smaller applications could help farmers improve productivity, teachers personalise instruction and entrepreneurs reach new markets, even as advanced AI systems require expensive computing infrastructure and specialised expertise.
On energy access, he said 59 million Africans had gained electricity access under Mission 300, an initiative that aims to connect 300 million people to electricity by 2030.
Separately, six multilateral development banks are working to standardise how investments are packaged and transferred, allowing institutional investors to finance existing projects and freeing up development bank capital for new investments.
The initiatives form part of the World Bank's broader effort to attract private capital, expand infrastructure and support employment in developing economies as the global workforce grows.
(With agency inputs)
Anjali Thakur is a Senior Assistant Editor with Mint, reporting on trending news, entertainment and health, with a focus on stories driving digital conversations. Her work involves spotting early signals across news cycles and social media, sharpening stories for SEO and Google Discover, and mentoring young editors in digital-first newsroom practices. She is known for turning fast-moving developments—whether news-driven or culture-led—into clear, tightly edited journalism without compromising editorial rigour.<br><br> Before joining Mint, she was Deputy News Editor at NDTV.com, where she led the Trending section and covered viral news, breaking developments and human-interest stories. She has also worked as Chief Sub-Editor at India.com (Zee Media) and as Senior Correspondent with Exchange4media and Hindustan Times’ HT City, reporting on media, advertising, entertainment, health, lifestyle and popular culture.<br><br> Anjali holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Miranda House, and is currently pursuing an MBA, strengthening her understanding of business strategy and digital media economics. Her writing balances newsroom discipline with a clear instinct for what resonates with readers.
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