EIB to bolster civil protection in Greece with new €220 mln loan
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has announced it will lend Greece €220 million to help protect it against floods and wildfires, which are occurring more often as a result of climate change, as well as against other natural disasters such as earthquakes.
The funding will be used to buy fire engines, firefighting planes and helicopters, drones, rescue vehicles and control centers, a statement from the Luxembourg-based bank said.
The bank said the support aids a multi-year Greek Aegis plan to strengthen the country’s civil-protection mechanism.
“We have seen first-hand the devastation caused by deadly wildfires and floods in Greece in recent years,” said EIB Vice-President Kyriacos Kakouris. “This support will help the country respond more quickly and effectively when disaster strikes, protect lives and better prepare for natural disasters and pandemics.”
The investment is part of the EIB Group’s EU-wide Climate Adaptation Plan and follows an initial loan to Greece of €375 million in January 2021.
Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Vassilis Kikilias said he was “proud that within a few months we have managed not only to put all of the [Aegis] projects to tender, but we are also progressing to the next stage, their contractualization.”
The bank said the new loan, along with the one in 2021, represents the first targeted direct EIB support for civil protection and disaster preparedness in Greece. It is also the largest amount of EIB aid for disaster management and response in Europe.
The program, to be implemented until 2025, will restructure civil protection in Greece to enable quicker responses, strengthened local preparedness and coordination and improved equipment, the bank said.
