International donors pledged € 11 million EBRD to support reforms in Ukraine

International donors have committed €11 million to a new fund established and managed by the EBRD that will support Ukraine’s efforts to reform its economy, improve its business climate and return to a path of sustainable growth, reported the press service of the bank.

Grants to the EBRD-Ukraine Stabilisation and Sustainable Growth Multi-Donor Account were made available by Finland, France, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, UK and the US. Denmark, Japanand Norway are also among countries considering contributing to the fund.

The creation of the account is a rapid response to Ukraine’s immediate economic requirements. The funds will help paving the way for a planned increase in EBRD investments in the country and to provide effective support to the authorities for policy reforms that are urgently needed to stabilise the economy.

“We are very grateful for this support from donors. This adds real impetus to the Bank’s ability to scale up its investments in Ukraine and to support it as it deals with significant economic and financial challenges. Moreover, the resulting improvement in the investment climate will attract further investment into the country,” said Sevki Acuner, EBRD Director, Ukraine.

“We are the first donor to commit financially towards this crucial fund and we are very pleased with the speed with which it was set up. Policy reform is a key priority for Ukraine and the EBRD has many skills to offer”, added Ronald Elkhuizen, representative for the Netherlands at the EBRD.

In the use of the funding there will be a strong emphasis on improving the investment climate and combatting corruption, stabilising the banking sector, increasing energy security, expanding private sector competitiveness and upgrading municipal infrastructure.

These focus areas for technical cooperation and grant co-financing activities were agreed by the authorities of Ukraine and the international community to ensure that the EBRD’s investments, especially in the public sector, are aligned with national priorities.

One such priority is combatting corruption, which has undermined economic and democratic progress. The EBRD, international organisations, local authorities and business associations have launched an Anti-Corruption Initiative with the goal to improve the investment climate and to strengthen the economic outlook by ensuring greater accountability, transparency and more effective rule of law.

The EBRD is on track to deliver around €1 billion of new investments in Ukraine this year alone. The Bank is the leading investor in Ukraine with €9.5 billion invested to date.

As Capital informed, EBRD forecasts Ukraine’s GDP decrease by 9% in 2014.