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CEB holds annual Joint Meeting in Berlin

13 June 2015

50th joint meeting with Minister RothBERLIN –The 50th Joint Meeting of the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) was held on 13 June in Berlin at the invitation of the German government. As in previous years, the meeting brought together the members of the Bank’s Governing Board and Administrative Council and CEB management.  

Michael Roth, Minister of State for Europe at the Federal Foreign Office which hosted the meeting, delivered the opening address. Also speaking at the meeting were Snežana Samardžić-Marković, Director General of Democracy at the Council of Europe, Dominique Lamiot, Chairman of the CEB’s Governing Board, Joseph Licari, Chairman of the CEB’s Administrative Council, and Rolf Wenzel, Governor of the CEB.  

In his address, Michael Roth praised the work of the CEB and said that the financing of social projects was important at a time when the social situation in Europe was tense. “Despite being a relatively small institution, the Bank makes a significant contribution to strengthening social stability and justice in Europe”, added Minister Roth.  

Snežana Samardžić-Marković said that providing better opportunities to young persons by supporting job creation in Europe was the CEB’s most important field of action. “The work of the Bank in strengthening social cohesion is important,” she added, “because building inclusive societies is the basis of stable democracy.”   

Governor Wenzel briefed the members of the Governing Board and Administrative Council on recent developments relating to the Bank’s financial and lending activity, and said that in an environment of volatility and weak growth the CEB maintained its good performance and remained financially sound.  

“Current developments in Europe keep reminding us why social challenges continue to top the agenda of policy-makers. It is precisely these ongoing challenges that make the CEB more relevant than ever when it comes to addressing the social issues that affect the continent’s most vulnerable populations”, added Governor Wenzel.  

Following the Joint Meeting, the members of the Administrative Council and Governing Board along with the CEB’s management visited the Ernst von Bergmann Hospital in Potsdam, which lies in the former German Democratic Republic. The modernisation of the hospital was financed by the CEB through the Investitionsbank des Landes Brandenburg (ILB).    

During the visit, Tillmann Stenger, CEO of the ILB’s Managing Board, talked about the cooperation between the CEB and the ILB, which has borrowed over € 600 million from the CEB for the financing of social projects in the past twenty years. Dr. Dirk Pappert, Medical Chief of Operative Intensive Care at the Ernst von Bergmann Hospital, spoke about the process of modernisation and expansion of the hospital in the years following the reunification of Germany.  

The CEB’s Joint Meeting on Saturday was preceded on 12 June by the 293rd Administrative Council meeting, held during the morning session, and the 211th Governing Board meeting in the afternoon.  

Next year’s Joint Meeting, which will coincide with the Bank’s 60th anniversary, will be held in Strasbourg at the invitation of the French government.

Set up in 1956, the CEB (Council of Europe Development Bank) has 41 member states. Twenty-two Central, Eastern and South Eastern European countries, forming the Bank's target countries, are listed among the member states. As a major instrument of the policy of solidarity in Europe, the Bank finances social projects by making available resources raised in conditions reflecting the quality of its rating (Aa1 with Moody's, outlook stable, AA+ with Standard & Poor's, outlook stable and AA+ with Fitch Ratings, outlook stable). It thus grants loans to its member states, and to financial institutions and local authorities in its member states for the financing of projects in the social sector, in accordance with its Articles of Agreement.

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