On April 10, 2023, during a working visit to Washington, USA, Minister of Finance of Ukraine Sergii Marchenko met with Akihiko Nishio, World Bank Vice President of Development Finance in charge of the International Development Association (IDA) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).

Deputy Minister of Finance Olga Zykova also took part in the meeting.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the economic situation in Ukraine, the current state of joint projects, as well as the need to raise funds for rapid recovery.

Sergii Marchenko noted the significant contribution of the World Bank, the IBRD and the IDA in cooperation with the donor countries of Ukraine.

“Thanks to the joint project with the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association “Public Expenditures for Administrative Capacity Endurance (PEACE) in Ukraine”, the Government of Ukraine is able to provide social and humanitarian expenditures of the state budget in full and in a timely manner,” said Sergii Marchenko.

Since the beginning of the Public Expenditures for Administrative Capacity Endurance (PEACE) in Ukraine project, Ukraine has received grants and loans totaling USD 14 billion and EUR 1.2 billion.

During the meeting, the Minister of Finance of Ukraine emphasized the need for quick recovery. The parties discussed the possibilities of extended financing for 2023 with the aim of attracting additional financial resources for the urgent recovery of critical, social and transport infrastructure, thanks to the introduction of a Special Program for Ukraine’s Recovery and Crisis Response (SPURR).

The SPURR program is implemented by the International Development Association (IDA), within the framework of which, the urgent recovery of Ukraine is possible thanks to the attraction of additional funding from donors, as well as the monetization of donor guarantees.

Sergii Marchenko noted that the amount of damage was increasing every day, and the recovery process should begin already this year. According to the Second Ukraine Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA2), which was prepared by the Government of Ukraine, the World Bank, the European Commission and the United Nations, the needs for rapid recovery in 2023 are USD 14.1 billion:

“In the current year, the cost of rapid recovery reaches USD 14.1 billion, of which USD 3.3 billion have already been mobilized from the state budget of Ukraine. Currently, we are determined to work constructively with international partners to attract the remaining necessary funding according to the five key priorities indicated in the RDNA2 report, namely: recovery of energy infrastructure, damaged and destroyed housing, humanitarian demining, recovery of critical and social infrastructure, as well as support for small and medium-sized businesses in Ukraine.”