The European Investment Bank will allocate 1.7 billion euros in new funds to the Western Balkans, primarily for the continuation of public investment, assistance to banks and entrepreneurs, said the head of the EIB office for the Western Balkans, Dubravka Negre.
“This is what we will focus on, how to continue with public investment, how to help banks and provide funds for entrepreneurs. The 1.7 billion euros will be used for these purposes, that is, for those projects that have already been approved,” Negre said for TV Prva.
She states that these funds have not yet been allocated by country and that it will depend on each country’s plans and priorities, but that Serbia will be able to account for the largest part.
She also commented on IMF estimates that Serbia will fall by three percent, adding that Serbia is well ranked relative to countries in the region and that economic activity is expected to decline across the EU.
She also stressed that all countries realized that they needed to focus more on their environment, which is a chance for this region, Negre said.
She explained that many who intended to move production chains to Asia would now do so to closer markets.
“I see a chance for this region here,” Negre said.
She recalled that the EIB Group had provided 5.2 billion euros to countries outside the European Union as part of a broader EU package of measures to address the effects of the pandemic of COVID-19, Kurir reports.
