Statement by Governor Monticelli at Ukraine Recovery Conference (Rome, 10 July 2025)

As prepared for delivery

I would like to thank the Italian Government for having organised URC2025 and recognise our fruitful collaboration with the Ukrainian authorities.

The Council of Europe Development Bank, the CEB, as Europe's social development bank, is proud to be part of the vital international effort to support Ukraine and its people, in collaboration with other international financial institutions and the G7, under Canada's helm.

The CEB has stood firmly with Ukraine since Russia's brutal aggression in February 2022.

We were quick on our feet, our trademark. As first responders, we issued loans and emergency grants to nearby countries, such as Poland and Romania, welcoming Ukrainians fleeing the war. By June 2025, the Bank had mobilised around €1.5 billion.

Meanwhile, we facilitated Ukraine's accession to the CEB as its 43rd member in June 2023, which allowed the Bank to operate in the country.

That was just two years ago.

The CEB has approved six loans since, totalling over half a billion euros, to support the country's urgent social needs, in health, housing and microfinance.

This is just the beginning. Our objective is to approve up to €1.2 billion in loans by 2027.

To this end, the CEB works closely with the Ukrainian authorities to deliver on the ground.

The CEB also collaborates closely with other multilateral development banks, notably with the World Bank in the case of the HEAL project. The project's objective is to restore and improve access to essential healthcare services, expanding in particular those related to mental health.

Importantly, during the two days of this conference - to operationalise the loans approved thus far - the CEB will be signing three agreements, worth over €300 million.

First, the Bank will sign a €200 million agreement to support the most vulnerable Internally Displaced People, in partnership with the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine.

Second, the CEB will top up its financing of a flagship project to help meet the housing needs of thousands of displaced people. Known as HOME, this project is being implemented in collaboration with the Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine.

Thanks to an additional €100 million CEB loan, 3,000 new beneficiary households will receive compensation for war-destroyed property. So far, 7,000 individuals have already received new homes.

And thanks to a grant from the European Union, with which the CEB enjoys a strong partnership, our Bank will help local Ukrainian authorities implement their compensation mechanism even more efficiently and inclusively.

Third, the Bank will sign a loan with Bank Lviv to support micro businesses' access to finance, which will help create and maintain jobs.

While CEB funding is already delivering tangible results, other partnerships are also key to enhancing reach and impact.

At URC2025, the CEB will be signing three Joint Statements: one with the Ukrainian Ministry of Health, another with the Ministry for Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine, and last but not least, one with the Government of Italy.

In fact, our close collaboration with Italy highlights how important bilateral contributions are for our social development projects. Together, we are working to address urgent housing needs across Ukraine.

Beyond its loans, the CEB also provides grants to finance urgent actions in the country.

Since last year, the Bank has been supporting urgent repairs in the All-Ukrainian Centre of Maternity and Childhood in Kyiv, which has maintained its operations despite the war.

We also launched a joint initiative with the Ukrainian Ministry of Social Policy, which will support the expansion of the Resilience Service - Ukraine's innovative model for community-based mental health and psychosocial support.

Through its financing and grants as well as its partnerships, the CEB reaffirms our long-term commitment to the Ukraine's social development and resilience.