The European Commission, on behalf of the EU, has disbursed €600 million to Ukraine under its COVID-19 related macro-financial assistance (MFA) program today, as was announced on the website of the European Commission press-service.
“Ukraine is the seventh country to receive a disbursement from the €3 billion emergency MFA package. The assistance aims to help 10 enlargement and neighbourhood partners to limit the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. This disbursement package for Ukraine will help to ensure the country’s macro-financial stability, while allowing it to allocate resources towards mitigating the socio-economic consequences of the pandemic,” the EC press service stated on its website.
According to Ukrainian Prime-Minister Denys Shmyhal, these funds will contribute to the development of the Ukrainian economy, particularly in the eastern regions of the country. On his official Telegram page, Shmygal stated that three corresponding loan agreements between the EU and Ukraine were signed:
§€ 340 million for infrastructure restoration in war-torn regions of eastern Ukraine. Part of them will be used to improve the level of living and to contribute to local businesses;
§€ 200 million to improve the quality and reliability of public transport in almost 20 cities in Ukraine;
§€ 100 million for the modernization of 183 km of roads in the Luhansk region.
Shmygal did not specify what another 100 million euros will be spent on.
As reported by ‘Apostrophe’, within the week the cash gap in the state budget of Ukraine increased by more than 5.5 billion hryvnias. At the same time, non-payments of protected budget expenditures, which include pensions and other "social benefits", are growing at an alarming rate.