The European Investment Bank Group (EIB), the bank of the European Union, invested 853 million euros overall across the Western Balkans in 2021 for sustainable development, the green transition, digitalisation and support for small businesses. Last year, the EIB invested 560 million in small and medium enterprises helping them to recover, adapt and continue to provide employment opportunities.
With close to 200 million euros invested in the Western Balkans’ digital sector since 2020, the EIB Group became one of the major facilitators of the digital transformation in the region. As part of Team Europe, the EIB has delivered on its commitment to inject 1.7 billion euros to aid faster recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, ensuring green, digital and sustainable growth.
To expand its local presence and boost financial and technical assistance for countries outside the European Union, the EIB Group launched EIB Global — aiming to accelerate project planning and implementation through tailor-made support provided by experts on the ground. The Western Balkans can reap the benefits of EIB Global, which will also be one of the main partners of the European Commission in implementing the Global Gateway initiative.
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EIB Vice-President Lilyana Pavlova, who is responsible for the Western Balkans, said: “I am extremely proud of the results achieved, which demonstrate our strong commitment under Team Europe to the green transition, digitalisation and private sector development. Our support was tangible not only in financing, but through scaling up our technical support for rolling out the Economic and Investment Plan, as well as the Green Agenda in the Western Balkans, that is going to pave the way for a cleaner environment and better living conditions.
We helped the region adapt to the new digital era through unlocking substantial funds for improving digital infrastructure and skills. Now, with the launch of EIB Global, we will be in a position to react promptly, address concrete needs on the ground, and expand our partnership and know-how to countries and regions needing it the most. It opens up a new chapter and elevates our outreach outside the European Union, enabling us to steer the wheel of digitalisation, climate change action and inclusive growth even more effectively.”
Source: EIB
