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Liguria and the CEB sign a € 70 million agreement to finance the Region’s three-year investment plan
21 May 2019
GENOVA – The President of the Liguria Region, Giovanni Toti, and the Vice-Governor of the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB), Carlo Monticelli, signed today a € 70 million loan agreement aimed at financing the Region's investment priorities. The signing was also attended by the Mayor of the City of Genova, Marco Bucci, in view of an upcoming financial agreement with the municipality that is currently being discussed with the CEB.
The funds made available by CEB will be used to finance strategic investments in key areas of the Region; they will improve safety and security, maintain and upgrade regional infrastructure and facilities, and modernise public administration services.
The CEB financing is provided under favourable conditions which will enable the Region to continue its programme of social investment for the benefit of the citizens, with a major impact on its territory and at a particularly sensitive time.
The cooperation agreement between the CEB and Liguria is part of the Bank's strategy to support local and regional authorities with the aim of promoting sustainable territorial development from an economic and a social point of view.
President Giovanni Toti said: "The cooperation that is established today between the Liguria Region and the Council of Europe Development Bank allows to consolidate the commitments of this administration towards the development of the territory; thanks to CEB’s resources we can finance the multi-year program of regional investments approved in recent years at advantageous conditions for the Region and for the whole territory. I hope that this cooperation will continue in the future, thus guaranteeing Liguria the support of an international financial partner, attentive to social and economic development.”
"The support coming from the CEB is fundamental for Liguria and Genova," declared the Mayor of the City of Genova, Marco Bucci. "Thanks to these funds and to those associated with the next agreement to be signed directly with the City of Genova, we will be able to cover major investment needs in a territory that was critically impacted by unpredictable events last year.
The CEB Vice-Governor, Carlo Monticelli, said: "We are pleased to sign this financing agreement and thus contribute to the achievement of important objectives for the inhabitants of Liguria. Interventions related to people’ safety and security and the improvement of living conditions represent core CEB activities, particularly when targeting to communities affected by tragic events and long exposed to significant hydrogeological risks. The Bank’s support to improve living conditions, in line with its mandate, is confirmed by the intervention in favor of the City of Genova, which is currently at an advanced stage of preparation.”
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 (AAA with Standard & Poor's, outlook stable, AA+ with Fitch Ratings, outlook stable and Aa1 with Moody's, 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.