European Commission has launched a new financial package to support 14 investment flagships in transport, energy, environment, human capital, and private sector support in the Western Balkans, worth, in total €2.1 billion.
This is the fifth investment package under the EU’s Economic and Investment Plan for the Western Balkans. Projects have been prepared in close cooperation with the Western Balkans partners and the international financial institutions to accelerate the European perspective of the region.
EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, said: “With this new investment package we are sending a loud and clear message to our Western Balkans partners: their future is within the EU and we are making steady progress to close the economic development divide. These projects will better connect the region from within and with the EU, help decarbonise their economies, and support the competitiveness of the private sector in the region. Now, I call on our Western Balkans partners and international financial institutions to rollout these projects as soon as possible so citizens and businesses in the region can reap the benefits from these investments.”
The €2.1 billion investment package, which includes €528 million in EU grants from the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III), additional bilateral contributions from EU Member States and Norway, loans from international financing institutions, and contributions from the economies of the Western Balkans, has been endorsed today by the Operational Board of the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF).
Photo: European Union, 2023