A rapid crisis response for Poland
€450 million: that is the size of the loan the CEB approved for the Republic of Poland in June 2022, the Bank’s largest ever single loan. The justification for the loan is clear: to help address the unprecedented humanitarian crisis sparked by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine in February 2022, in particular by supporting the initial relief and assisting people fleeing the conflict, mostly women, children and the elderly. The loan demonstrated the Bank’s rapid responsiveness to an emergency, based on its long-standing experience of crisis management and issues surrounding refugees and population displacement.
Poland, which shares a long border with Ukraine, has faced a large and sustained flow of displaced people since the start of the conflict. Around 8.5 million displaced persons from Ukraine crossed the Polish border from February to December 2022 (over 3 million were recorded when the CEB loan was approved); Poland was hosting some 1.5 million registered displaced persons by December, mainly women, children and elderly people, UN data show. For Poland, this means extraaccommodation, healthcare, education, and other basic social services. With budgetary pressures building at local and national levels, the Polish government created the Aid Fund, to be managed by the Polish development financial institution called Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego (BGK). The CEB loan, which comes in the form of an emergency Public Sector Financing Facility (PFF), is designed to help the state treasury make a cash contribution to the Aid Fund, which will also be financed by bond issues and transfers from other social funds.
The final beneficiaries of this operation are the entities in the front line of the management of the humanitarian crisis in Poland, such as the Ministry of Family and Social Policy, Ministries of Education and Health, and local municipalities; which can draw on the Aid Fund to cover expenses and offset costs. The CEB loan will be used for accommodation needs, and one-off grants to help registered displaced people to meet immediate costs. It will also fund monthly allowances for children. The loan is expected to cover around 27% of the cost of these areas, which together are expected to account for some 70% of the Aid Fund’s expected disbursement. One of the key initiatives financed by this PFF is a cash-transfer mechanism, designed to reach the vulnerable people most in need. It is a very effective, flexible people-centered tool that has been proven in emergency situations.
Sources:
Ukraine Refugee Situation (unhcr.org)
Ukrainian refugees in Poland 2022 | Statista
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