The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has supported the initiative of the Minister of Infrastructure Vladyslav Kryklii to establish special funds to finance the development of airports and railway infrastructure in Ukraine. This will allow to ensure their further sustainable development and open new opportunities for attracting private investment in the industry.

This was discussed during the meeting dedicated to the presentation of the results of the study of the institutional capacity of the Ministry of Infrastructure for structuring and implementation of public-private partnership projects, which took place today, January 14.

The event gathered together Minister of Infrastructure Vladyslav Kryklii, Deputy Head in Ukraine of the EBRD Sustainable Infrastructure Sector Mark Magaletsky, Director of Sustainable Infrastructure Policy and Project Preparation at EBRD Matthew Jordan Tank, Head of the EBRD's Sustainable Infrastructure Policy Unit John Seed, State Secretary of the Ministry of Infrastructure Volodymyr Buchko, Head of SPILNO project office Taras Boychuk, Senior Managing Director at Ankura Consulting Group James Hanson, Managing Director at Ankura Misbah Uddin, other representatives of the Ministry and the EBRD.

"Implementation of promising public-private partnership projects remains one of the main priorities of the Ministry for this year. And we continue to work with international financial organizations. I am grateful to our constant partners with the EBRD for their comprehensive support in the implementation of large-scale infrastructure projects in Ukraine and the introduction of our key initiatives. The creation of special funds to finance the development of airports and railways is one of them. In the future, this will allow us to ensure stable financing of infrastructure and open new opportunities for attracting private investment, "said Vladislav Krykliy during the event.

Therefore, the EBRD has already disbursed funding and selected consultants to analyze international experience, develop a concept and draft relevant legislation to implement the above-mentioned initiative. It is planned that the work of consultants will begin soon.

In addition, during the meeting, representatives of the consulting company presented the results of a study of the Ministry's institutional capacity to structure and implement PPP projects, as well as relevant recommendations for improving performance.

It should be noted that back in 2019, the Ministry of Infrastructure and the EBRD agreed to provide the agency with consulting support in order to analyze its ability to structure and implement PPP projects. In the medium term, this initiative will help the Ministry to develop the most appropriate tactics for preparing such projects and building critical infrastructure. The purpose of the project is to assess the advantages and disadvantages of the current mechanism of the agency's work on PPP projects, as well as to identify areas that may require additional support from the EBRD.