World Bank Group launches Mission 300 Private Sector Council to mobilize investment for Africa’s 300 million electricity connections by 2030

The World Bank Group, alongside the African Development Bank and The Rockefeller Foundation, has launched a Mission 300 Private Sector Council aimed at mobilizing the private investment needed to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030, with an emphasis on supporting job creation across the continent. Fourteen private sector leaders will support strategies to crowd in capital and deal-making capability, scale catalytic finance platforms including local-currency solutions, and accelerate commercial investment aligned with Mission 300. Makhtar Diop, Managing Director of the International Finance Corporation, and Ray Chambers, Chair of the MCJ Foundation, will serve as co-chairs. The release also highlights that nearly 600 million people in Africa lack access to electricity, Mission 300 has connected 44 million people since its 2024 launch, 30 countries have signed energy compacts, and the International Finance Corporation and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency have committed USD 5 billion in support of private sector investment under Mission 300 by 2030. The Rockefeller Foundation’s RF Catalytic Capital will host the council’s secretariat, and the council will meet quarterly.