April 29 (SeeNews) - The European Commission announced on Wednesday over 3.3 billion euro ($3.6 billion) of financial support to the Western Balkans aimed to address the region's immediate health needs arising from the coronavirus pandemic and help with its social and economic recovery.
The financial support package, mobilised jointly with the European Investment Bank (EIB), includes reallocations from the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) of 38 million euro of immediate support for the health sector, 389 million euro to address social and economic recovery needs and a 455 million euro economic reactivation package, in close cooperation with international financial institutions, the EU's executive body said in a statement.
The package, announced ahead of the EU-Western Balkans' leaders meeting of May 6, also includes a proposal for 750 million euro of macro-financial assistance and a 1.7 billion euro package of assistance from the EIB, the EU Commission said.
"We have a special responsibility to assist in this pandemic our partners in the Western Balkans, as their future clearly lies in the European Union. The EU is mobilising a substantial financial package, confirming the strong solidarity," EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said in the statement.
The EU is also providing immediate humanitarian assistance to vulnerable refugees and migrants amounting to 4.5 million euro and 8 million euro to address pressing needs in migrant camps across the region, EC said.
"The EU acted quickly and comprehensively to support the Western Balkans in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, with unparalleled financial assistance as well as access to many of the EU's initiatives. And our work will continue as we prepare an Economic and Investment Plan for the region, to tackle the hard socio-economic impact of the crisis, to modernise the economies in the region, support the reforms and start closing the development gap, thus bringing concrete benefits to the people faster," commissioner for neighbourhood and enlargement, Oliver Varhelyi, noted.
The EU Commission will later in the year come forward with an economic and investment plan for the region, to spur the long-term recovery, boost economic growth and support reforms required to move forward on the EU path, including a substantial investment package.
For the 2021-2027 period, the EU Commission has proposed a total envelope for the Pre-Accession Instrument III of 14.5 billion euro, of which the lion's share is destined for the Western Balkans. The Commission foresees a doubling in the provision of grants through the Western Balkans Investment Framework and substantially increasing the financial guarantees to support public and private investment in the region through a dedicated Guarantee Instrument under the Western Balkans Investment Framework, it said.
($ = 0.921262 euro)