MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Luxembourg Donates $4m to EIB for Technical Assistance for Microfinance in Asia, Caribbean, Pacific (ACP) Countries

The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry for Foreign and European Affairs of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg recently agreed to give EUR 3.6 million (USD 4 million) to the EU’s European Investment Bank (EIB) for microfinance in low- and middle-income countries of Asia, the Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP). The funding is for institutions serving micro- and small enterprises, mostly for technical assistance relating to capacity building.

The President of EIB, Werner Hoyer, said, “We address critical funding gaps by blending loans with grants from our partners. These innovative blending solutions ensure a high impact – for donor countries and institutions as well as for people in the project regions.”

Created in 1958, EIB supports projects in EU member states, likely future member states and other EU partner countries, principally in the field of small and medium-sized enterprises. As of 2018, EIB reported total assets of EUR 556 billion (USD 621 billion) and a loan portfolio of EUR 451 billion (USD 504 billion).

Sources and Additional Resources

EIB press release
https://www.eib.org/en/press/all/2019-308-eib-donors-conference-luxembourg-and-eu-bank-strengthen-their-cooperation-on-microfinance-and-climate-action

Luxembourg Ministry of Finance
https://mfin.gouvernement.lu

Luxembourg Ministry for Foreign and European Affairs
https://maee.gouvernement.lu

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