Western Balkans – Expansion of AFD’s intervention mandate (10 July 2018)

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Jean-Yves Le Drian, Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, announced, on July 10 during the summit in London, the decision to expand the intervention mandate of the French Development Agency (AFD) to all Western Balkans countries (Albania, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia) in order to support regional integration and rapprochement with the EU.

The agency’s new regional mandate includes three main areas:

  • support for the rapprochement process between these countries and the EU, notably in the areas of connectivity and the strengthening of social cohesion;
  • support for the transition toward sustainable development trajectories and especially the energy transition, as well as the territorial and ecological transition of these new counterparts, in keeping with the Paris Climate Agreement;
  • a strengthened French presence in the region, thereby helping to strengthen our bilateral relations in numerous areas.

AFD, which will use a very wide range of financial and non-financial tools in the Western Balkans, will provide its recognized expertise in the area of project structuring and support for local contracting authorities. Its intervention will complement that of other donors involved.

AFD’s establishment in the Western Balkans reflects France’s commitment to supporting the six countries in the region on the path toward sustainable development that will benefit all.