Under the leadership of World Bank President Ajay Banga, the crucial focus on job creation in developing and emerging economies has taken center stage. This strategic shift is primarily driven by the World Bank's projection that within the next twelve to fifteen years, 1.2 billion young individuals will enter the job market in these regions, while only 400 million job opportunities are expected to be available. "This presents a tremendous opportunity if we handle it correctly, but it also poses a significant problem if we fail to do so," Banga remarked during a press conference at the World Bank's annual meeting in Bangkok.
Even in rapidly aging societies and those experiencing population decline, there remains a pressing need to create additional job opportunities for young people in the foreseeable future. Banga highlighted that, for instance, China needs to create between twelve million and fifteen million jobs, a goal they are struggling to achieve. Importantly, this emphasis on job creation does not imply that the World Bank is neglecting its work in sectors such as healthcare, energy, or water quality improvement.
However, the urgency of this focus hinges on whether young people can find employment. The alternative, as Banga warned, is unrest, something he has observed not only in countries like India, Bangladesh, Nepal, or Sri Lanka but also in instances where thousands attempt to migrate from Morocco to Spain. Young individuals often lead these protests. "When you have no hope, what do you do? You might turn to drugs, engage in criminal activities, or emigrate," Banga stated.
Following this job-centric approach, the World Bank is also keen on harnessing Artificial Intelligence (AI) for the benefit of developing nations. The new project initiative focuses on AI applications that assist nurses in diagnosing diseases within the healthcare sector or help illiterate farmers identify plant diseases using their mobile phones. Such projects have already been launched in Indonesia and India. Banga advises developing countries not to attempt to compete with the US and China by creating AI language models but rather to invest in simple, tailored AI applications for small entrepreneurs, as these require significantly less computing power and energy.
One of the central challenges in development work is financing. Budget cuts from major industrialized nations and the strained fiscal situations in many countries have led to a scarcity of public funds. Since taking office, Banga has been actively working to unlock greater private funding. In the fiscal year 2026, the World Bank mobilized an unprecedented $112 billion in private capital for developing countries, which is more than three times the amount raised in 2022. Together with its own resources, the World Bank made over $200 billion available for development initiatives.
To facilitate this, the World Bank employs financial instruments that mitigate commercial, political, and currency risks for investors. While Banga refrains from making specific predictions about the future of private capital mobilization, he expresses strong hopes for a World Bank project aimed at creating a new asset class that could attract significant interest from large pension funds, foundations, and insurance companies. “They are not interested in a single water project in Kenya. However, if we could bundle twenty water projects into a bond worth one billion dollars and secure a BBB-plus rating, it might pique the interest of major investors,” he explained.
Nevertheless, for the poorest countries ravaged by conflict, the mobilization of private capital has stagnated, as Banga acknowledged. Therefore, in these regions, promoting micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises is at the forefront of the World Bank's strategy, aiming to create and secure jobs in the process.
Moreover, Banga noted that the energy crisis and disruptions in supply chains have sparked a surge of inquiries from coastal nations in Africa and Asia looking to expand their ports to adapt to changing delivery routes. Additionally, plans are emerging in Africa for refineries and fertilizer factories aimed at reducing dependencies on supplies disrupted by geopolitical bottlenecks. All countries have learned that energy security is fundamentally a matter of national security, which includes expanding renewable energy, nuclear power, and natural gas where regionally appropriate. “We should not impose our views on the suitable energy mix on any country,” Banga concluded.
As reported by faz.net.
