COVID-19 and the World Bank’s Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility

The Ebola Crisis motivated the World Bank to launch the Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility in 2016. But how effective has the PEF been in dealing with COVID-19?

Written by Gbolahan Badmus

Nov 23, 2020

Health workers at the Mpilo Central Hospital Covid-19 testing laboratory. IKB Mpofu/ILO

Finance plays an instrumental role when battling a pandemic. However, timing can undermine the availability of funds e.g. the slower finance is mobilized, the faster pandemics spread. During the 2014/2015 West African Ebola Crisis, the World Bank estimated that a delay in funding led to a loss of about 11,000 lives with significant economic and social costs to the affected countries. This delayed response to financing was also, among other things, due to a deficit in timely and agile financing, and therefore motivated the World Bank to launch the Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) in 2016. But how effective was the PEF when the next major health crisis, COVID-19, hit the continent?

THE MECHANISM OF THE PEF

The PEF is a financial mechanism housed by the World Bank to assist financially disadvantaged countries dealing with a prevalent disease. It consists of pandemic bonds, swaps and donations. A substantial portion of the PEF was raised from the private sector via the international capital market. Countries eligible to benefit under the PEF are mainly International Development Association (IDA) countries, including Nigeria and most African countries. Pay-outs under the PEF are done through two outlets called the ‘insurance window’ and ‘cash window’.

You’ve Reached Your Limit of Free Reading.

The Republic is a Nigerian media-tech company dedicated to explaining our time—through deeply reported journalism on power, culture and society.

Ad-Free Reading Experience

Focused consumption without interruptions.

Unlimited Access to Exclusive Archives

Years of reporting at your fingertips.

In-Depth Deep-dive Reporting

Long-form journalism that matters.

Create a free account to continue reading this month and access more of our work.

About the Author

Gbolahan Badmus

is a legal practitioner. His writing has featured in the Journal of Law, Policy, and Globalisation; Saraba Magazine; Litro UK; Selves: An Afro Anthology of Creative Non-Fiction; among others. He currently resides in Lagos, Nigeria.

Xx.com

Comments

SHOP THE REPUBLIC

The Sinister Side of Oluremi Tinubu’s ‘Entrepreneurial Citizenship’

The recent rhetoric of micro-entrepreneurship advanced by Nigeria’s first lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, harks back to longstanding assumptions about poverty in Africa while echoing a newer, more insidious discourse of entrepreneurial citizenship. Taken together, these narratives serve the interests of African governments and powerful external actors.

—March 22, 2026

The Night Women of Benin City

As daylight fades in Benin City, women step into the night to sustain families, communities and an informal economy that keeps the city alive. The women-led night markets of Benin transform into spaces of survival, solidarity and quiet resistance.

—March 22, 2026

The Speculative Worlds of ‘Yan Crypto

You thought the Nigerian cryptocurrency ecosystem was confined to Lagos? Think again. Meet northern Nigeria’s ‘yan crypto and the digital worlds of volatile money they deftly navigate.

—December 21, 2025

Inside Nigerian Freelancers’ Currency Trap

Nigeria’s freelance economy is growing, but for millions of digital workers, receiving international payments remains an extreme sport. If the country wants to export digital labour and capture its value at home, it must first fix how that labour gets paid.

—November 9, 2025

What Naira Decoupling Means for Nigeria’s Economy

For decades, oil has dictated the fate of the naira. When crude prices soared, the currency strengthened; when they collapsed, the naira buckled. This cycle, so familiar to Nigerians, once seemed unbreakable.

Subscribe to our free newsletter.

What’s your e-mail?

You’re in — welcome to The Republic

Complete your onboarding

Read

Connect