IDA (International Development Association)

IDA (International Development Association) is the part of the World Bank Group that finances development in the world's poorest countries through grants and highly concessional loans, called credits. IDA commitments reached $33.8 billion in FY2025, making it one of the largest sources of official development finance and a major generator of procurement opportunities in low-income markets.

What is IDA (International Development Association)?

IDA serves more than 70 countries that fall below the Bank's income threshold for IBRD borrowing, concentrating its lending in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and parts of East Asia and the Pacific. Like IBRD, every IDA operation that uses Bank funds for procurement must comply with the World Bank Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers, so the notice types, evaluation methods, and contract management requirements are identical between the two windows.

IDA procurement appears alongside ibrd-international-bank-for-reconstruction-and-development notices on the World Bank's public procurement search portal and REST API, and is tracked through the STEP system. Because IDA projects often target sectors with acute delivery challenges, such as rural infrastructure, primary health, and food security, the procurement frequently involves complex logistics, last-mile delivery requirements, and community engagement components that experienced suppliers in those sectors can differentiate on. Suppliers from all 189 member countries are generally eligible to bid.

Why IDA (International Development Association) matters for bidders

IDA projects represent some of the highest-volume procurement across Africa and South Asia, sectors where competition is often lower than in the OECD procurement markets. The 18-month rolling procurement plans published by IDA borrowers on the World Bank portal let suppliers plan registrations, partnerships, and proposal teams well ahead of notice publication. For suppliers in civil works, health commodities, agricultural inputs, and education services, monitoring IDA project approvals is an effective early-warning system for upcoming tenders. Because IDA financing covers the full project cost for the poorest countries, procurement volumes are not constrained by recipient country budget cycles, which makes the pipeline more consistent than bilateral-aid-financed work.

FAQ

What is the difference between an IDA grant and an IDA credit?

An IDA grant is given outright and does not need to be repaid. An IDA credit is a concessional loan with low interest rates and long repayment periods, typically 25 to 40 years with a grace period. Both generate the same procurement obligations under World Bank regulations.

Are IDA procurement notices published differently from IBRD notices?

No. Both appear on the same World Bank procurement search portal and API, using the same notice types and fields. Suppliers can filter by project country to identify IDA-financed tenders in specific markets.

Which regions receive the most IDA financing?

Sub-Saharan Africa typically accounts for the largest share of IDA commitments, followed by South Asia. Within Africa, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and the Democratic Republic of Congo are consistently among the largest IDA borrowers.