BAKU: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the EU are expanding support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, Belarus, Moldova, and Ukraine amid the crisis due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Trend reports citing the EBRD.
The EBRD said that the expansion of support for the SMEs to be implemented under the Eastern Partnership program. With the support of EU grant financing in the amount of 5 million euro, the EBRD’s advisory services are aimed at meeting the needs of SMEs in the Eastern Partnership member countries, as well as supporting their growth by contacting local and international consultants,
The new program will support companies in learning digital technologies to run smoothly, increase their competitiveness and export potential, and increase their chances of accessing the financial resources they need to grow. “Advisory services, especially for supporting the digitalization, are an important element for SME entrepreneurs to overcome the current crisis.
As part of Europe’s Coronavirus Outbreak Response Team, the European Commission has mobilized an emergency support package for Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. This group has introduced a new SME support program worth 100 million euro, as well as the simplification, acceleration, and adaptation of existing credit lines and grants for SMEs in local currency under the EU4Business initiative worth 200 million euro,” said the statement.
This program is a continuation of the more ambitious projects of the EBRD – EU to stimulate the growth of SMEs in the Eastern Partnership countries with the help of business consultations and international experience. More than 250 SMEs are expected to receive such consulting services over the next three years. – PNP
