World Bank assembling $725M emergency package to Ukraine
The Bank is also preparing to provide assistance to countries on the Ukrainian border
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The World Bank is sending a major financing package to Ukraine as the country fights back against an invasion from neighboring Russia.
"The World Bank Board of Executive Directors today approved a supplemental budget support package for Ukraine, called Financing of Recovery from Economic Emergency in Ukraine – or FREE Ukraine – for $489 million," the Bank said in a statement. "The package approved by the Board consists of a supplemental loan for $350 million and guarantees in the amount of $139 million and is also mobilizing grant financing of $134 million and parallel financing of $100 million, resulting in total mobilized support of $723 million."
"The World Bank Group is taking quick action to support Ukraine and its people in the face of the violence and extreme disruption caused by the Russian invasion," World Bank President David Malpass said in a statement Monday. "This is the first of many steps we are taking to help address the far-reaching human and economic impacts of this crisis."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ((Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP))
"The fast-disbursing support will help the government provide critical services to Ukrainian people, including wages for hospital workers, pensions for the elderly, and social programs for the vulnerable," the World Bank said.
A woman cries outside houses damaged by a Russian airstrike, according to locals, in Gorenka, outside the capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda) (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda / AP Newsroom)
The World Bank is also prepping a package to provide support to countries on the Ukrainian border that have taken in refugees amid the ongoing conflict.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin (Yuri Kochetkov/Pool Photo via AP / AP Newsroom)
"The World Bank Group is preparing a $3 billion package of support for Ukraine in the coming months and additional support to neighboring countries receiving Ukrainian refugees," the Bank said. "According to UNHCR, since the onset of the invasion, 1.7 million Ukrainians – primarily women, children, and elderly – have fled to neighboring countries. Medium and long-term support will be needed for the provision of public services, both for refugee and host communities, and labor market access for refugees."