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Add to Preferred SourcesAt its 314th meeting held in Paris, the Administrative Council of the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) approved eight new loans for a range of social projects totaling close to €700 million. These bring the total amount approved so far this year to almost €3.6 billion.
France: a €100 million loan to Métropole Aix-Marseille-Provence, a public inter-municipal co-operation establishment, to fund the modernisation of the Marseille subway network called NEOMMA (“New Marseille Metro”). Some 2 million inhabitants of the metropolitan area Aix-Marseille-Provence are expected to benefit from the loan.
Germany: a €150 million loan to Investitionsbank des Landes Brandenburg to finance projects in social and municipal infrastructure as well as in social housing for low-income persons. The funds provided by the CEB will benefit vulnerable population groups, such as migrants and refugees, persons with disabilities, the elderly, and families with young children.
Germany: a €63 million loan to Stuttgarter Wohnungs- und Städtebaugesellschaft mbH to finance innovative social housing projects and contribute to the protection of Stuttgart’s architectural heritage. The funds provided by the CEB will help to increase the rental housing units on offer in Stuttgart through the construction and modernisation of affordable social housing.
Ireland: a €150 million loan to the Housing Finance Agency, the public entity mandated with providing financing to approved housing bodies and local authorities. The CEB funds will finance the retrofitting of existing rented social housing units as well as the construction of new, energy-efficient housing throughout the country.
Netherlands: a €10 million loan to Qredits, a Dutch not-for-profit foundation supporting MSMEs, entrepreneurship and employment. The loan will finance the creation of new businesses, the preservation of existing jobs, and the (re)insertion of unemployed or inactive persons into the formal job market.
Poland: a €86 million loan to the City of Warsaw to support its policies in the areas of culture, health and public transport. The projects funded by the CEB will enhance Warsaw’s infrastructure and cultural life, which is expected to improve living conditions for the population of the city and the wider region and have a positive impact on the environment.
Poland: a €34 million loan to the Region of Świętokrzyskie to finance investments in regional infrastructure, particularly in health and public transport, including the modernisation of the road network. The CEB-financed project will improve living conditions and provide access to improved healthcare for a large part of the region’s 1.2 million inhabitants.
Spain: a €100 million loan to Nuevo Microbank to support job creation and strengthen social cohesion in Spain. The funds will be used to provide financing to entrepreneurs, microbusinesses, immigrants and families in a vulnerable situation, who have restricted access to the banking system.
Original source: CEB
Published on 27 September 2019