The ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) said Thursday its project commitments rose sharply in 2025, underscoring the growing demand for infrastructure financing across West Africa as the region pushes to address chronic deficits in energy and transport.
The regional development lender said total commitments reached US$813.77 million in 2025, an increase of 83 percent compared with the previous year, while project approvals rose 50 percent.
The figures were presented during the bank’s 24th Ordinary Session of the Board of Governors held in Accra, ahead of an ECOWAS ministerial meeting focused on regional economic integration and infrastructure development.
The strong rise in commitments reflects the scale of financing needs across West Africa, where governments and development institutions are under pressure to close longstanding infrastructure gaps that continue to constrain growth, trade and industrial expansion.
According to the African Development Bank, Africa requires between US$130 billion and US$170 billion annually to meet its infrastructure needs, but still faces a financing gap estimated at US$68 billion to $108 billion a year.
For West Africa, much of that pressure is concentrated in the energy and transport sectors, both seen as critical to improving competitiveness and supporting deeper regional integration.
Energy infrastructure remains one of the region’s most urgent priorities. Around 600 million people across Africa still lack access to electricity, while several West African countries continue to struggle with unreliable power grids, high electricity costs and heavy dependence on imported fuel.
Weak energy systems have remained a major obstacle to industrial growth, private investment and job creation across the region.
Transport infrastructure is also a key bottleneck. Poor road and rail networks, limited logistics capacity and high freight costs continue to undermine regional trade and market access, even as African governments seek to take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The World Bank has repeatedly warned that Africa faces some of the highest transport costs in the world, reducing competitiveness and slowing the movement of goods across borders.
Against this backdrop, EBID said it has also expanded its role as a catalyst for broader project financing, mobilizing significant external support alongside its own lending commitments.
The bank said it secured more than US$510 million and €310 million from development and financial partners, in addition to an extra US$100 million in capital mobilization.
That financing, the bank said, is intended to support transformative regional projects, particularly in sectors that can unlock productivity, improve connectivity and support inclusive growth across ECOWAS member states.
EBID also reported improvements in its financial performance, with its balance sheet growing to US$2.39 billion in 2025, up from US$1.97 billion in 2024.
The bank’s profitability increased by 13.3 percent to US$9.75 million, reflecting stronger activity and an expanding development finance portfolio.
Credit ratings agencies Moody’s and Fitch reaffirmed the institution’s ratings at B2-Stable and B-Stable, respectively, a signal of continued confidence in the bank’s financial standing despite the broader macroeconomic challenges facing the region.
However, the bank said capital contributions from member states remain uneven, pointing to a recurring challenge for regional institutions that rely on government backing.
Only four ECOWAS countries — Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea and Togo — fully met their 2025 capital obligations, leaving total arrears at US$256 million.
That shortfall could limit the bank’s ability to scale up support at a time when demand for concessional and long-term project financing is intensifying.
Still, the latest figures suggest EBID is playing an increasingly central role in financing the infrastructure needed to support West Africa’s development ambitions, from expanding electricity access to improving transport corridors and boosting cross-border trade.
For policymakers in the region, the challenge now is to ensure that stronger financing commitments translate into projects that are delivered on time, efficiently managed and capable of producing broad economic gains.
