BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 11. Last year, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) reengaged with Kyrgyzstan's energy sector, and this yielded projects aimed at improving the country’s climate resilience, Regional Head of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan for the EBRD, Ayten Rustamova told Trend.
“Last year we had the highest operational result in Kyrgyzstan over the last 5 years, and I am very proud. 67 percent of our projects were in the private sector, and almost 40 percent of these investments were green. In fact, it is our ambition to become a majority green bank by 2025. We played a role in fostering inclusive employment opportunities, supporting innovative entrepreneurial endeavors, and advancing climate-resilient technologies within the country. It would be fair to say that we have an ongoing and fruitful dialogue with the national authorities, which translates into increased public sector lending,” she said.
The regional head noted that projects included a loan to increase the reliability of the national electricity transmission and distribution grid and a loan to rehabilitate and modernize the Lebedinovskaya hydropower plant – EBRD’s largest investment in the country’s hydropower sector in 20 years.
“The EBRD also pledged new funds to support the modernization of water supply services in the Batken and Jalal Abad regions of Kyrgyzstan in the context of its Kyrgyz Water Sector Resilience Framework. Our bank also signed a sovereign loan to upgrade a 30-kilometer section of the Issyk-Kul Lake Ring Road. The project will help modernize key transport infrastructure, which will help improve the country’s connectivity and tourism potential in the Issyk-Kul area,” Rustamova said.
She mentioned that in 2023, the EBRD also wrapped up the Bishkek landfill project, bringing significant environmental advantages to over one million residents in Kyrgyzstan's capital.
“Finally, we continued rolling out our flagship programmes such as the Green Economy Financing Facility, designed to support green and innovative solutions, and Green Cities, helping to tackle environmental challenges and encouraging investment in municipal infrastructure. The Bank also launched a seven-year Youth in Business programme to help youth entrepreneurs and address the issue of employment in Central Asia and Kyrgyzstan,” Rustamova said.
As of February 29, 2024, the loan portfolio of the EBRD's projects in Kyrgyzstan was estimated at 232 million euros, covering 81 active projects. The bank has invested a whopping 970 million euros in a total of 242 projects in Kyrgyzstan.