World Bank approves £551m package for Ukraine 

The World Bank Board of Executive Directors has called the supplemental budget support package Financing of Recovery from Economic Emergency in Ukraine – or Free Ukraine – and set it at $489m (£372.5m).  

The board-approved package comprises a supplemental loan of $350m (£266.7m), with guarantees at $139m (£106m) from the Netherlands and Sweden.

The organisation is further mobilising grant financing of $134m (£102m) from Britain, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania and Iceland, and parallel financing of $100m (£76m) from Japan.

The support will help enable the provision of critical services, including improvements in water supply, sanitation, heating, power, energy efficiency, roads, social protection, education and healthcare.

The World Bank said it is continuing to work on a £3bn support package for Ukraine in the coming months.

It is also committing to helping neighbouring countries. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimate Ukraine’s neighbours to have accommodated 1.7 million refugees, with over 1 million going to Poland. Support is required for public services, as well as labour market access.

David Malpass, president of the World Bank, said: “The World Bank Group is taking quick action to support Ukraine and its people in the face of the violence and extreme disruption caused by the Russian invasion.

“The World Bank Group stands with the people of Ukraine and the region. This is the first of many steps we are taking to help address the far-reaching human and economic impacts of this crisis”.