Sergii Marchenko met with the EBRD President
Today, on April 20, Minister of Finance of Ukraine Sergii Marchenko met with the President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Odile Renaud-Basso.
Deputy Minister of Finance Olga Zykova and Deputy Minister of Finance for European Integration Yuriy Draganchuk also took part in the meeting.
The parties discussed the economic situation in Ukraine, needs for recovery, the current state of joint projects with the EBRD and further cooperation.
Sergii Marchenko thanked EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso for her unwavering stance on supporting Ukraine against the russian military invasion and increasing the Bank's investments in Ukraine to support its real economy. He also noted the clear position of the Bank, in particular, in ceasing cooperation with the aggressor country. In April 2022, the Board of Governors of the EBRD for the first time in the history of the Bank adopted the Resolutions, which provide for the suspension and change of access of russia and belarus to the Bank's resources.
“The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has continued to help Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale russian invasion. Every initiative and project launched in conjunction with the EBRD to support the economy and the private sector is vital to us in wartime. Success in this difficult phase and subsequent recovery will largely depend on external assistance. Timely receipt of international financing and cooperation with international financial organizations remain an important precondition for the stable functioning of the military economy and the state budget,” said Sergii Marchenko.
During the meeting, the Minister of Finance of Ukraine emphasized that the key task of the Government of Ukraine at the moment is the rapid recovery of our country. He noted that within the framework of the Multi-Agency Donor Coordination Platform for Ukraine, priority needs for recovery for 2023 are presented in the total amount of USD 14.1 billion, of which USD 3.3 billion will be financed from the state budget of Ukraine, and the remaining amount will require timely support from donors and international financial organizations in 2023.
Priorities for recovery this year include energy, humanitarian demining, housing reconstruction, critical and social infrastructure support, and private sector support. Figures of recovery needs are verified according to the joint report of the Government of Ukraine, the World Bank, the European Commission and the UN - Second Ukraine Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA2).
"We consider the recovery of Ukraine not only from the point of view of repairing destroyed roads and housing, but rather as a complete transformation of the country on the way to European integration," - noted the Minister of Finance of Ukraine.
In turn, EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso reported that this year the Bank intends to focus on the recovery of Ukraine in the areas of private sector support, in particular, small and medium-sized businesses, financing of road reconstruction projects, support of the energy sector, and cooperation with cities and communities of Ukraine.
Additional Information
EBRD launched a special Crisis Response Fund to support vital sectors of the Ukrainian economy that suffered as a result of russian aggression. Contributors to the Fund are currently France, Canada, Italy, Japan, Norway, Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark and the United Kingdom and the USA. Donor contributions are used as financial guarantees and investment grants, to support vital sectors of the Ukrainian economy.