Global Gateway: European Commission and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development deepen their partnership to boost private sector investment in partner countries

Today, Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, and Odile Renaud-Basso, President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), signed a new Financial Framework Partnership Agreement (FFPA) between the European Commission and the EBRD to boost investment in sustainable infrastructure and private sector development and to cooperate for example on issues such as nuclear safety.

Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen said: “The EBRD is one of our key allies in rolling out the EU’s Global Gateway strategy – our €300 billion investment in digital, green, transport, health, and education infrastructures. Its experience, presence on the ground, and expertise – particularly on private sector development – make it an exceptional partner for advancing Global Gateway in our partner countries, as Team Europe. Today’s new agreement covers all types of blending operations, including financial instruments. It will enable us to make an even bigger difference for our partners and their citizens.”

EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso added: “We enjoy a strong partnership with the European Union that is built on shared values and shared priorities. I am proud of and thankful for the EU’s continued support for the EBRD as a key partner of the European Financial Architecture for Development, which has already helped to improve the lives of millions of people in emerging and developing economies and, more recently, enabled us to respond swiftly to the war on Ukraine.” 

The new Financial Framework Partnership Agreement (FFPA) includes all types of blending operations, including financial instruments, as well as provisions to execute EFSD+ guarantee agreements, subject to further guarantee agreements.

In addition, Commissioner Urpilainen and President Renaud-Basso launched two new initiatives:

• Building crisis-resilient Micro, Small and Medium Size Enterprises in Mongolia post Covid-19: In the framework of this agreement, the EU is contributing a €11.5 million grant out of a total of €43 million to help develop Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in the post-COVID period by providing financing for business and strengthen the role of business associations to address challenges faced by companies related to the pandemic.
• Sustainable Private Sector in Central Asia: The EU will contribute to this project €5.3 million out of a total of €28.6 million to facilitate access to finance for private enterprises in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, in particular Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises.