Brussels, 28/04/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 28 April, the day after the EU-Ukraine summit was held in Kiev (see EUROPE 11303), the European Commission announced the disbursement of €110 million in financial aid for Ukrainian SMEs and entrepreneurship.
Around €70 million will come from a special measure for private sector development that is part of the €11 billion macro-financial aid package approved by the EU in order to support Ukraine's public finance and economy following the war in the east of the country. Another €40 million will be used as a loan guarantee facility and will come from the Neighbourhood Investment Facility (NIF).
“The EU is contributing to economic recovery, in particular in the regions most affected by the need to integrate internally displaced persons”, said European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn in a press release.
Out of the €110 million, €95 million will be allocated to the Economy-EU Sure action to facilitate implementation of the economic policies helping to boost SMEs. Business support centres will be set up in at least 15 regions of Ukraine and will be managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in association with local business associations, banks and regional authorities. Other measures will facilitate Ukrainian SMEs to participate in the Horizon 2020 programme. The remaining €15 million will be disbursed as technical assistance and subsidies, and will contribute to the development and enforcement of reforms in areas such as economic governance, trade, statistics, financial services, transport and energy. (Mathieu Bion)