CEB publishes report on second Social Inclusion Bond

The Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) published an impact report on its second Social Inclusion Bond, which was issued in March 2018. The report provides information on the social impact of the projects financed.

The proceeds of the CEB’s second Social Inclusion Bond, which was issued in 2018 and was of € 500 million with a seven-year maturity, were allocated to high social-added-value projects in three key sectors of CEB activity:

1) support to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in order to strengthen job creation and preservation

2) social housing for vulnerable population groups

3) education and vocational training

These are priority sectors of operation for the CEB and areas in which European countries have important needs.

Commenting on the report, CEB Governor Rolf Wenzel said: “As a development bank with an exclusively social mandate, the CEB has been and remains fully committed to supporting the social policies of its member countries. The proceeds of the CEB’s Social Inclusion Bonds are used for projects with a particularly high social impact in areas that are vital for social development in Europe at the moment, namely social housing, education, and support to MSMEs. In the new report, CEB provides full and transparent information on the use of the proceeds from the second Social Inclusion Bond, which, I hope, will be of use to our readers. Following strong investor interest, we will be issuing our third Social Inclusion Bond in the weeks to come.”

Thanks to the provision of financing to MSMEs, more than 65,000 jobs have been preserved and almost 6,000 new jobs have been created. In social housing, 2,600 dwellings have been made available to low-income persons through construction or renovation projects. In education and vocational training, about 24,000 students in 31 institutions have benefited from the funds.

Read and download the report here.

Original source: CEB
Published on 26 March 2019