Joint projects

In 2025, grant approvals reached €40 million, while loans guaranteed by the Social Impact Account (SIA) and, where applicable, InvestEU reached €152 million ̶ an increase of more than 60% from last year.

As a sign of solidarity among CEB member countries, the Bank provides enhanced support to 23 Target Group Countries in Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe. The 2025 distribution of approved grants and guaranteed loans reflects this priority.

Grants financed by CEB trust funds supported 23 projects in 15 member countries. Ukraine received the largest share of grants with €18 million or 44% of total approvals, followed by the Republic of Moldova and Romania. Assistance to migrants, refugees and displaced persons accounted for the largest share of approvals at €21 million or 51%.

Projects on which the CEB cooperates with donors differ greatly in scope, yet all aim to serve Europe’s most vulnerable populations by meeting essential needs like housing, education and healthcare.

• Digital training courses in Albania
  Albanian authorities have partnered with the CEB to develop digital skills among the population. The Bank has approved a €27 million loan to set up information technology laboratories in around 600 schools across the country. The loan will be blended with a €10 million investment grant from the Western Balkans Investment Framework.
• Support to women in Albania
  To help farmers in Albania, especially women, invest in modern equipment and improve practices, the Bank has partnered with FED Invest, a financial cooperative and Slovak authorities. Farmers receive microloans from FED Invest, thanks to a €10 million loan from the CEB and technical support on sustainable practices, financed by the Slovak Inclusive Growth Account.
• Green transition in Bulgaria
  The Bulgarian Development Bank plays a central role in advancing green and socially oriented investment programmes in Bulgaria. To strengthen this role, the CEB is supporting BDB, through the Green Social Investment Fund, in enhancing its environmental, social, governance and climate risk management framework.
• Support to microentrepreneurs in Bulgaria
  To support disadvantaged groups, the CEB has joined forces with the EU and SIS Credit, the country’s largest microfinance institution. SIS Credit provides disadvantaged microentrepreneurs with affordable microloans and business development services, thanks to a €3 million loan from the CEB and a €600 000 grant from the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+).
• Urgent investments in Kosovo hospitals
  In 2025, the CEB approved a €21 million loan to co-finance, with the EIB, a first phase of urgent investments in six public hospitals totalling €41 million. The Bank is providing technical assistance, funded by a grant of up to €750 000 from the Social Impact Account, to strengthen the project’s effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability and to accelerate its implementation.
• A new hospital in the Republic of Moldova
  In 2025, the CEB secured a €6 million grant from the EU’s Neighbourhood Investment Platform (NIP) to help co-fund the construction of a tertiary care hospital in Bălți. The new facility will enhance tertiary healthcare services quality and access for over 680 000 residents in the country’s northern region.
• Renovated schools in the Republic of Moldova
  In 2025, the CEB secured a €5 million grant from the Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environment Partnership (E5P) to co-finance the modernisation and deep renovation of 15 schools across the country. The project is expected to benefit around 12 800 students and reduce by 65% the heating and electricity costs of the schools and thus their environmental footprint.
• New university facilities in North Macedonia
  Ss. Cyril and Methodius University, located in the capital city of Skopje, is the oldest and largest public university in the country. North Macedonian authorities have launched an ambitious initiative to improve the University’s facilities. It is supported by a technical assistance grant from Spain through the Spanish Social Cohesion Account.
• Earthquake preparedness in Romania
  To help mitigate the impact of an earthquake on Bucharest, the country’s capital, the Bank supports the Municipality’s initiative to assess seismic vulnerabilities in more than 1 000 buildings across the city in 2025. The assessment, which is partly funded by a €500 000 grant from the Disaster Prevention and Recovery Fund, will help prioritise investments in structural safety.
• Reintegration of former inmates in Romania
  The CEB is working with the EU, public and judicial authorities and NGOs to help Timisoara penitentiary inmates rebuild their lives. The Bank is supporting the feasibility study of a Reintegration Centre which will offer comprehensive support to inmates to facilitate their reintegration into society, thanks to a €225 000 InvestEU Advisory Hub grant.
• Improved healthcare infrastructure in Türkiye
  Türkiye hosts approximately three million refugees, making it one of the world’s leading refugee-hosting countries. The country’s authorities, in coordination with the CEB, are implementing a project to improve healthcare for refugees and their host communities across the country financed by a €140 million contribution from the EU.
• Improved procurement in Ukraine
  Ukraine’s ability to procure and contract in line with best practice is key to the country’s reconstruction. In 2025, the CEB partnered with Italy to provide training in procurement management for Ukrainian procurement professionals. The project is supported by a €120 000 grant from Italian authorities via the Italian Fund for Innovative Projects.
• Psychosocial support in Ukraine
  The ongoing impact of Russia’s full-scale military invasion of Ukraine has placed enormous pressure on the country’s health system and population well-being, leading to a surge in mental health issues. The CEB is supporting Ukrainian authorities in expanding psychosocial support through Resilience Centres across the country, via a grant of approximately €550 000 from the Ukraine Solidarity Fund.
• Paediatric care in Ukraine
  The Bank supports a medical centre in the city of Kyiv, Ukraine, that is a leading institution for paediatric and neonatal care nationwide. The Bank approved in 2024 two grants totalling €350 000 from the Ukraine Solidarity Fund and the Migrant and Refugee Fund to finance urgent repairs and prepare a comprehensive upgrade of the centre.