At the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s investment summit for the Western Balkans in London, the United Kingdom unveiled a €4.56 billion aid package for energy and infrastructure to boost trade and investment between the country and the Western Balkans, create jobs, and support income sources across various nations.
The summit, attended by the Prime Ministers of Montenegro, Kosovo*, and Serbia, as well as British business leaders, highlighted that trade between the UK and the Western Balkan region was valued at €5.13 billion in 2023 and is growing.
The British Government will also allocate up to €4.56 billion to increase British exports to the region through UK Export Finance, the British Export Credit Agency that provides guarantees to British companies for secure trading abroad.
This financial support is already showing tangible benefits in the region, such as €413.82 million for the Morava Corridor motorway in Serbia, which will connect the industrial city of Kruševac with key commercial centres like Sarajevo and Bar.
Additionally, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia, Ana Brnabić, stated during the summit in London, after meeting with the President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Odile Renaud-Basso, that Serbia is among the top five countries in cooperation with the bank.
In a statement to the press, Brnabić mentioned that the total value of signed and ratified agreements between Serbia and the EBRD amounts to approximately €2.3 billion.