Projects in focus

Flexible financing for a fast-growing city

Vilnius was the first capital city in the Baltic states to work with the CEB, and is one of the most innovative and dynamic cities in the Nordic-Baltic region. In 2017 the CEB approved a public sector finance facility (PFF) for €35 million with Vilnius City Municipality, helping to part-finance many social investments in the city. Another €35 million loan agreement has been signed on 20 April 2021.

Lithuania Urban, rural and regional development, Education and vocational training, Health and social care

A place to call home

Between 2016 and 2019 the number of adults in Ireland who were registered homeless grew from 3,885 to 6,363. A €150 million CEB loan to Ireland’s Housing Finance Agency (HFA) is helping to deliver new social housing to vulnerable people.

Ireland Social and affordable housing

Bridging the gap for Castilla la Mancha

A €150 million European Co-financing Facility (ECF) from the CEB is enabling the Spanish autonomous region of Castilla la Mancha to bridge funding gaps and deliver on a range of priorities, from new jobs and enhanced education facilities to investments in technology and innovation.

Spain Protection of the environment, Urban, rural and regional development, Education and vocational training

Helping Tampere meet demand for student housing

CEB loan will improve living conditions for the students and facilitating access to university areas

Finland Education and vocational training, Social and affordable housing

Ensuring a resilient Bank

Robust business continuity planning ensured that, when the COVID-19 crisis hit, the CEB was able to continue focusing on its core business, disbursing loans for social projects, supporting borrowers and issuing bonds on capital markets.

The roadmap to a sustained, green, inclusive and resilient recovery

Info talks to Monica Scatasta, Director of the CEB’s Technical Assessment and Monitoring Directorate (TAM) about the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and how the CEB’s member countries can build resilience into their recovery strategies.

Cork County: Investing in growth

A cross-sectorial loan (CSL) of €33.7 million is the first between the CEB and Cork County Council and will part-finance up to 52 projects in nine town centres across the county

Ireland Social and affordable housing

‘It all comes down to people’

Simon Bond, Director of Responsible Investment Portfolio Management at Columbia Threadneedle Investments, talks to Info about the CEB’s COVID-19 Response Social Inclusion Bond, and the impact of the crisis on the bond market.

Taking action in Madrid

Spain has been among the hardest hit nations in the COVID-19 crisis, with the autonomous community of Madrid accounting for almost one third of Spain’s confirmed cases. A €200 million public sector financing facility (PFF) from the CEB is helping to minimise loss of life and improve citizens’ health.

Spain Health and social care

Interview with Erion Veliaj, Mayor of Tirana

'We turned the pandemic crisis into a golden opportunity.'

Albania Urban, rural and regional development, Protection of the environment

A shared resolve

With Europe particularly hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, Info talks to the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Marija Pejčinović Burić, and to the Governor of the CEB, Rolf Wenzel, about how their organisations have supported European countries to cope with the crisis.

Latvia: Making educational excellence a reality

Investing in the education – and therefore the future – of young people is vital for creating cohesive, prosperous and competitive societies. The CEB has approved two loans to Latvian universities, totalling €27 million, to support the country’s economic development and boost its competitiveness on the world stage.

Latvia Education and vocational training

Being there for the most vulnerable in the COVID19 pandemic

Microfinance provider and CEB client PerMicro introduced a set of measures to help families and businesses through the crisis

Italy MSME financing

Finland and the CEB: building on a great relationship

Finland acceded to the CEB on 13 May 1991. While the country’s relationship with the Bank spans nearly three decades, newly agreed loans in spring 2020 are enabling Finnish cities to build for the future - enhancing their infrastructure and improving the lives of their inhabitants.

Finland Education and vocational training, Urban, rural and regional development

The geography of discontent

Info talks to Andrés Rodríguez-Pose, Professor of Economic Geography at the London School of Economics, about the importance of investing in cities and regions in decline.

Kaunas – a creative city

Kaunas is an important regional, cultural and business centre in Lithuania, and funding from the CEB is being used in innovative projects across the city’s education, health, sports and cultural services.

Lithuania Urban, rural and regional development

A leading light

Info talks to Stefania Manca, Genoa Resilience Manager, about the City’s plan to make Genoa more resilient.

Italy Urban, rural and regional development

Kuopio: on the way to the ‘good life’

Despite social and economic challenges, Kuopio, in Finland’s Northern Savonia region, has a vision: to become the ‘capital of good life’ and a regional growth centre within twenty years. The CEB is helping Kuopio on its way by part-financing municipal investments in line with the City Strategy 2030.

Finland Urban, rural and regional development

Bosnia and Herzegovina: strengthening women's entrepreneurship

CEB loan to MI-BOSPO is the first to serve mostly low-income women entrepreneurs with limited or no access to bank financing.

Bosnia and Herzegovina MSME financing

‘Mission impossible’ becomes a reality

Tucked away in the Van der Pekstraat in Amsterdam North is ‘Coloured Goodies’, a shop full of beautifully made dark-skinned dolls, from Barbies and Miffy characters to Asian, Arabian and African dolls.

Netherlands MSME financing