Off the wire
• Chinese FM hails Sino-Greek civilization exchanges, mutual learning  • First batch of polling stations close in France  • Britain's Sunday newspapers go into election overdrive  • Romani beggars in Norway in fear after TV documentary: report  • Interview: Greece, China "steam engines" in highlighting culture as factor for coop, growth and stability: Greek FM  • Four soldiers killed, three injured in Pakistan's bomb blast  • Feature: Ethiopia taps Chinese firms to employ a burgeoning youth population  • Nepal's agitating parties call off planned protests before local body elections  • Bomb planted outside Belfast school intended to kill: police  • News Analysis: Trump displays tougher foreign policy than Obama  
You are here: 　 Home

Macedonia to get 72 mln euros from EBRD for development of SMEs

Xinhua, April 23, 2017 Adjust font size:

Macedonia will receive additional affordable loans worth 72 million euros (nearly 77 million U.S. dollars) from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in order to support the development of its small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), Macedonia's Ministry of Finance said Sunday.

In a statement, ministry said the funds are part of an EBRD program designed to support Western Balkan countries.

Citing Finance Minister Kiril Minsoki, the ministry said that Macedonia has the right to use 20 percent of the fund, whose total amount reaches at 360 million euros.

According to the minister, this program resolves a segment of the array of issues as regards access to finances that are vital for the private sector, deemed the backbone of the Macedonian economy, and in general of all economies in the world.

Affordable loans for SMEs will be offered in domestic currency through commercial banks, directly through the EBRD or 50­50 co-financing while interest rate ranges from 4 to 5 percent, the ministry explained.

Minoski is currently attending the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank in Washington, as the ministry informed.

On the sidelines of such meeting, the IMF and the World Bank said that Macedonia's economy was stable despite all the challenges of the political crisis. Endit