European Commission and World Bank Group renew agreement to strengthen development cooperation
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The World Bank Group (WBG) and the European Commission have signed a Financial Framework Partnership Agreement, which guides the terms under which the Group will use funding from the EU to implement development projects across the world.
The agreement will bolster economic growth, generate employment opportunities, reinforce skills, provide support to fragile areas, fight climate change, and address gender inequalities across the world.
In addition, the agreement will help accelerate the partners’ joint response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Over the years, the European Commission and the World Bank Group have together helped millions of people around the world live better lives. With today’s agreement, we are equipping ourselves with a more renewed toolbox to more effectively address today’s more numerous and more complex global challenges,” said Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner for the Budget and Administration.
“COVID-19 has significantly increased the complexity of the challenges faced by our client countries. Our partnership with the European Commission is now more important than ever as we work together to end extreme poverty, increase shared prosperity, and improve the lives of millions of people around the world,” said Axel van Trotsenburg, World Bank Managing Director for Operations.
For the period 2015–2019, the EU contributed US$2.34 billion to the WBG trust funds in order to strengthen country outcomes around the world.
Examples include development projects in Afghanistan, Ukraine, Somalia, and the Sahel, as well as support for global partnerships like the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery.
In Ukraine, IFC partnered with the European Commission and other development actors to help the government lower GHG emissions in the residential housing sector.