Donors will provide EBRD with 1 bln euros for Ukraine
KYIV. May 13 (Interfax-Ukraine) - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) received commitments in an amount of 1 billion euros in donor funds to support Ukraine at the EBRD's 2022 Annual Meeting and Business Forum held in Marrakech, Morocco, the bank said in a press release on Thursday.
"These funds, some of which are subject to national approval processes, will be used alongside the Bank's own to help infrastructures and companies in Ukraine and other affected countries," the EBRD said.
The bank's governors - who represent its 73 shareholders - expressed their solidarity with Ukraine and signaled their strong support for the EBRD's efforts to respond to the crisis.
They also asked the bank to be ready to play an active part in the country's reconstruction in the future.
"We have a clear strategy for our response to Ukraine, and it is already being implemented. I am very grateful for the support from our shareholders, and the donor funds will enable us to deliver impact in Ukraine in 2022 and beyond," the press release quoted EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso as saying.
"As for the future reconstruction, the EBRD will have a very important role to play as the largest institutional investor in the country. We will be ready for this when the time comes," Renaud-Basso said.
Out of the 1 billion euros pledged for Ukraine in 2022, the bank has already signed four projects worth a total of 80 million euros.
Renaud-Basso also said that the EBRD is implementing a specialized advisory program for Ukrainian small and medium-sized businesses relocated from the conflict zone, providing consulting services to help them develop new business and attract new clients.
A 150-million-euro program to provide emergency financial assistance to private businesses in Ukraine is also being drawn up, Renaud-Basso said. The EBRD has received a large number of requests to postpone certain payments and has already postponed some of them, she said.
At the same time, some projects are continuing, and requests for new projects, including financing for trade, are being received, she said.
Referring to her recent meeting with National Bank of Ukraine Governor Kyrylo Shevchenko and a Ukrainian Finance Ministry official, Renaud-Basso said that the Ukrainian banking system is continuing to function properly and that both the Ukrainian government and state-owned infrastructure companies are efficient.
In the current situation, the EBRD is taking steps that it does not take in ordinary conditions, she said. For instance, the bank is doing much more to maintain liquidity and is providing emergency financing. Furthermore, the EBRD will put greater focus on the energy and food security of all countries where it operates, Renaud-Basso said.