EBRD Annual Review 2023
About the EBRD
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) promotes the development of sustainable, private sector-led economies in central and eastern Europe, Central Asia and North Africa. The Bank helps them to address 21st-century challenges and lends support to improve the lives and environments of citizens across society.
Through investment, policy reform and advisory projects, the EBRD works to make economies more competitive, well governed, green, inclusive, resilient and integrated. These “transition qualities” best equip countries for a prosperous and equitable future for all.
The Bank’s goals are closely aligned with those of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which aims to deliver economic, social and environmental progress.
The EBRD invests in projects that cannot be funded solely by the private sector, but which follow sound banking principles. It works mainly with private clients, though it also finances public entities that deliver essential infrastructure, goods and services.
It partners with donors that provide funding for advisory and technical assistance projects crucial to the success of Bank investments.1
The EBRD is owned by 73 shareholder governments, the European Union and the European Investment Bank. It operates from headquarters in London, with a network of Resident Offices and satellite offices across the EBRD regions
Responding to the catastrophic earthquakes in Türkiye
The EBRD rapidly turned its attention to the
devastating earthquakes that struck south-eastern
Türkiye on 6 February 2023.
The impact was immense, leaving more than 50,000 people
dead and twice as many injured, inflicting damage on more
than half a million buildings and seriously impairing energy
and communications infrastructure. At least 4 million people
were displaced.
SMEs were particularly badly affected, as staff perished
or moved to safer areas.
The epicentre of the quakes was near the border with
Syria, which also suffered major damage and loss of life.
The affected Turkish region had already been facing major
challenges: one of the least developed areas of the country,
it was host to 1.7 million refugees escaping the Syrian war.
After the earthquake struck, the EBRD drew up a fourpronged response plan to provide Türkiye with emergency
and reconstruction financing of €1.5 billion over two years.
The first and central plank of the plan was a disaster response
framework that dedicated €600 million in credit lines through
partner banks to both companies and individuals directly
affected by the disaster, as well as to firms participating in
disaster recovery activities.
Under the €600 million framework, disbursement to partner
banks was quickly arranged, including €131 million to Isbank,
€84 million to DenizBank and €176 million in equal tranches
to Akbank, QNB Finansbank and Yapi Kredi.
The second tier of support includes financing for the
reconstruction of sustainable infrastructure in the affected
cities, building on the Bank’s strong track record of cooperating
with local authorities in Adana, Gaziantep, Hatay and Mersin.
Another focus is liquidity for the railway network. Financing
gaps had arisen due to a loss of revenue after the railway
operated free of charge in the affected region; a rise in
operating costs from the transport of aid, rescue teams and
vital equipment; and the urgent need to repair damaged
infrastructure.
The Bank’s infrastructural support goes hand in hand with
an ambitious policy agenda aimed at maximising the positive
impact of new construction projects and creating more
liveable cities by promoting best environmental, social and
governance standards.
Third, the EBRD provided working capital and capex facilities
to affected private-sector companies, which allowed them to
continue operating and help maintain the livelihoods of their
employees.
In so doing, the Bank is encouraging companies to acquire
new and green technologies and adopt a digital approach.
It is helping them to rebuild local value chains and address
weaknesses in human capital through skills and workforce
development.
Fourth, the EBRD has sought to help SMEs affected by the
earthquake, which were unable to resume operations after
the initial impact.
The Bank’s Advice for Small Businesses programme is
helping these companies to reconstruct damaged buildings,
production assets and infrastructure, blending its traditional
know-how and advisory offering with reconstruction grants
that will cover 85 per cent of the reconstruction and repair
costs, to a maximum of €60,000.
Across all Turkish sectors in 2023, the EBRD delivered
a record €2.48 billion to 48 projects, a sharp increase on
the €1.63 billion provided the previous year.
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