The World Bank’s top 10 contractors in 2022

The World Bank Group is one of the leading funders for low- and middle-income countries. It aims to eradicate extreme poverty and increase the incomes of the world’s poorest populations. Based on its annual report, it disbursed $67 billion in the fiscal year that ended on June 30, 2022. The time period coincided with the rollout of vaccines in lower- and middle-income countries and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This led to an increase in the bank’s spending by $6.4 billion from the previous year. Of this amount, $17.7 billion, or 26.4%, was disbursed through over 31,000 activities known as major contract awards — financed under the Investment Project Financing operations. We looked into the data to see who got the biggest share of the World Bank’s money and where it was spent. A focus on pandemic response Spending on major contracts remains the same as the previous year. But unlike in the past where construction and infrastructure firms dominated the list, the largest portion of World Bank’s money in 2022 went to pharmaceutical companies and United Nations agencies. This pivot is driven by the increased funding for the COVID-19 response. In June 2021 — a month before the start of the fiscal year — the World Bank announced an additional $8 billion financing for vaccine procurement. Based on the MCA data, over 1,100 goods, works, and services related to pandemic response were procured — having a total value of $3.4 billion. Although the World Bank has allocated over $18 billion since the start of the war in Ukraine, it did not go through traditional procurement channels, and therefore does not appear in this analysis. Based on MCA data, the total disbursement for Ukraine amounted to just $94.3 million — none of which is related to the ongoing conflict. Top 10 contractors in 2022 Overall, the top 10 contractors won $4.3 billion — 24.2% of the total. Among them, three are U.N. agencies, which mostly won contracts through direct selection — a noncompetitive procurement method where the bank or a borrower country negotiates with only one suitable or preferred organization or when an existing contract gets extended. The rest of the list is composed of three pharmaceutical companies, two construction companies, a technology solutions company, and a consortium of infrastructure and transportation companies. Four contractors are state-owned: the China National Biotec Group and China State Construction Engineering Corporation; and French companies RATP and SNFC, which formed a consortium with private company Meridiam. Only the U.N. Office for Project Services and Moderna were also on the list of the top 10 contractors in the previous year. 1. UNICEF Founded: 1946 Location: New York Total contract amount in FY 2022: $1.1 billion UNICEF is the World Bank’s top contractor in 2022, with $1.1 billion — 5.9% of the total. This is a huge jump from the $134.5 million the agency got in 2021. The bulk of this, worth $970.6 million, is for pandemic-related activities — mainly the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines to Africa and Asia. The rest ranged from supply of nutrition commodities, to development of remote learning content, and delivery of vaccines for other diseases, such as yellow fever, measles, rubella, mumps, and seasonal flu. 2. BGH Tech Partner Founded: 2003 Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina Total contract amount in FY 2022: $695 million BGH is a technology company focused on the implementation and management of cloud-based solutions. It was awarded $695 million for the maintenance and integration of a hydrometeorological early warning system in Buenos Aires. The contract is part of the flood risk management project in the city. 3. Pfizer Founded: 1849 Location: New York, United States Total contract amount in FY 2022: $472.2 million The American pharmaceutical and biotechnology company was awarded $472.2 million for the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines to Argentina. The contract is part of the World Bank’s emergency response program. In 2021, Pfizer’s hub in the Netherlands was also among the top suppliers, with $284.6 million for the delivery of vaccines in selected countries. 4. China National Biotec Group Founded: 1919 Location: Beijing, China Total contract amount in FY 2022: $439.8 million CNBG is a subsidiary of state-owned health enterprise Sinopharm. It is the second-largest supplier of COVID-19 vaccines to the World Bank in 2022, based on the MCA data. It received $439.8 million for the delivery of doses to Angola, Bangladesh, and Kyrgyzstan. 5. Moderna Switzerland Founded: 2010 Location: Basel, Switzerland Total contract amount in FY 2022: $435.6 million Moderna Switzerland is still among the top contractors, with $435.6 million for COVID-19 vaccines to Bhutan and Argentina. It was third on the list in 2021, with $352.8 million for the procurement of vaccines for the Philippines. 6. United Nations Office for Project Services Founded: 1973 Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Total contract amount in FY 2022: $394 million UNOPS won $394 million for 53 contracts. Of this, 48 contracts, worth $91.5 million, went to procurement of goods for ongoing World Bank projects. Its biggest award, worth $198 million, will support the implementation of the Northern Crisis Recovery Project in Mozambique. 7. World Food Programme Founded: 1961 Location: Rome, Italy Total contract amount in FY 2022: $301 million WFP — U.N.’s leading humanitarian organization — is among the biggest recipients of World Bank’s money. It was awarded $241.5 million to provide income support to citizens and help students at risk in Lebanon through cash transfers. The contract is funded under the Emergency Crisis and COVID-19 Response Social Safety Net Project. 8. China State Construction Engineering Corporation Founded: 1957 Location: Beijing, China Total contract amount in FY 2022: $231.9 million CSCEC is a state-owned construction and real estate conglomerate. It’s the largest construction company in the world by revenue. It won $165.9 million for road construction services and installation of fiber optic cables in Kenya. These contracts are part of the Horn of Africa Gateway Development Project. The remaining $66 million went to the modification of a bridge and construction services for a bypass highway in Cote d’Ivoire. 9. ACCIONA Agua Founded: 1997 Location: Alcobendas, Spain Total contract amount in FY 2022: $162 million ACCIONA Agua is a subsidiary of renewable energy company ACCIONA. It focuses on providing a range of solutions to water-related problems, including desalination, water management, and wastewater treatment. It was awarded $162 million for the construction of a wastewater treatment plant and pumping station in Ecuador — financed under the Guayaquil Wastewater Management Project. A further $9.4 million was awarded to Acciona Agua’s office in Argentina for works under the Matanza-Riachuelo Basin Sustainable Development Project. 10. Meridiam, RATP Dev, & SNCF Founded: 2005; 1993; 1938 Location: Paris, France Total contract amount in FY 2022: $149.6 million The consortium of Meridiam and state-owned companies RATP and SNFC won $149.6 million for the acquisition and operation and maintenance of the first bus rapid transit network in Dakar, Senegal. Meridiam is an asset management company focused on public infrastructure projects. RATP Dev provides services for the operation and maintenance of public transportation, while SNFC is France’s primary railway operator. Try out Devex Pro Funding today with a free five-day trial, and explore funding opportunities from over 850 sources in addition to our analysis and news content.