At the EU-Western Balkans summit, held in Brdo near Kranj, the president of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Werner Hoyer, stated that the EU supports European integration in the region, a sustainable recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and the digitalization of the regional market.
These goals are part of the European Union’s Economic and Investment Plan (EIP) for the Western Balkans, which provides a framework for an investment package worth almost 30 billion euros, to foster more sustainable, green, digital growth.
“The support of the European Investment Bank will be strengthened by a greater local presence and an approach that is adapted to this European region. The plan reaffirms the EU’s role as a major partner. It allows the region to adopt EU norms and standards before its EU accession. This will accelerate the socio-economic integration of the countries within the region, as well as their integration with the EU. He will, with the help of strict procurement requirements, ensure quality investments and transparency,” assessed the President of the EIB, Werner Hoyer.
Recent of this approach is the first Western Balkans Railway Summit, held in Belgrade, organized by the EIB, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Commission and the Transport Community. Construction work has also begun on the Corridor X railway in Nis, a key project for sustainable transport in the Western Balkans.
“We have successfully fulfilled our commitment to, within Team Europe, contribute to the urgent response to Covid-19 with 1.7 billion euros, including, among many other projects, guarantee schemes for youth employment, digitalization of schools and support for SMEs to increase their social impact, especially with regard to gender and intergenerational equality. As the EU’s climate bank, we are fully committed to supporting investment in cleaner energy, adapting to climate change and green technological development,” Hoyer concluded.
Since the start of the pandemic, the EIB has allocated 715 million euros to the private sector as part of the Team Europe initiative to help preserve jobs and businesses, accelerate recovery and the transformation into a green and digital model. During 2021, the EU bank has already contracted projects worth almost 600 million euros, which are expected to initiate investments in the amount of 1.2 billion euros, Danas reports.
