EU financial support package to rebuild greener and safer Ukraine

As Ukraine continues to fight for its freedom, the country's economy is faltering, suffering its sharpest downturn in more than 30 years, with a 30.4% drop in GDP.

The European Union has provided financial and military assistance to Ukraine over the past 12 months, holding Ukraine up as a symbol of European solidarity and safety from Russia, even paving the way for Ukraine to join the EU in the future, after granting it candidate status in June 2022.

In Kyiv on 2 February, alongside 15 European Commissioners, President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen said: “Europe has been by Ukraine’s side since day one, because we know that the future of our continent is being written here.”

This, as the EU announced a new €450 million assistance package for 2023, which brings the total financial support to Ukraine from the EU, its Member States and European financial institutions to around €50 billion.

The €50 billion provided by the EU, European financial institutions and Member States comes in different forms and is spent on a variety of areas, including humanitarian aid, military assistance, Macro-Financial Assistance and loans. 

Macro-Financial Assistance is a form of aid for EU partner countries experiencing a balance of payments crisis, and is used to finance government expenses like pensions, salaries, education and restoring infrastructure.

The EU has also pledged to donate equipment to help ease Ukraine’s energy crisis, including 35 million LED light bulbs and 5400 generators, as well as help to repair the power grid, 40% of which has been destroyed by Russian missile strikes.

The World Bank estimates the cost to Ukraine, in terms of economic recovery and reconstruction of infrastructure, to be around €320 billion.

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