EBRD allocates €4.5 million to Ukrposhta to turn post offices into invincible points. This was reported on the EBRD website..

" This ingenious solution will provide Internet access for people even in remote rural areas of Ukraine, despite the ongoing Russian shelling of the country's electricity infrastructure..

Ukrposhta is using a grant from the EBRD Shareholder Special Fund to purchase satellite Internet access equipment and power generators that will provide reliable communications and mobile charging points throughout the network of post offices of the company, the largest in the country.

This system will not depend on the national power grid of Ukraine, which has been constantly under Russian attacks since autumn, leading to widespread power supply restrictions, which means that Ukrposhta branches, even in remote and rural areas, will be able to serve as points of invincibility for the local population..

The grant will help purchase equipment for 1,700 post offices in more than 450 cities. As part of this project, Ukrposhta will add €1.5 million of its own funds to the €4.5 million EBRD grant for the purchase of additional equipment, including heaters, Wi-Fi routers and lighting equipment.

This EBRD grant is in addition to the previous EBRD project signed in November 2020, which provided for Ukrposhta to receive a loan of 63 million euros from the EBRD for the modernization of logistics infrastructure. The initial loan was for the purchase of up to 1,900 car-based mobile post offices for use in rural areas, as well as the construction of modern automated sorting hubs and depots across the country (this €30 million tranche included co-financing from the European Investment Bank in the form of a loan of another €.

As of September this year, more than 1,600 mobile offices are already operating on the routes. They have replaced many fixed post offices in rural areas and are playing a vital role in delivering mail, pensions and essential goods to local residents across the country, including in the newly liberated territories in eastern and southern Ukraine..

The total amount of financing provided by the EBRD since the beginning of the invasion of Russian troops in Ukraine in February has already exceeded €1 billion. Working together with donors and guarantors, the Bank has focused on supporting the real sector of the economy, primarily trade, energy security, critical infrastructure, food security and the private sector. During 2022, it has provided significant liquidity funding and is now increasing assistance for emergency critical infrastructure repairs..

During a visit to Kyiv in October, EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso assured President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky that the Bank was determined to support Ukraine during its defense against Russian aggression, and also announced the EBRD’s intention to allocate up to €3 billion in 2022-2023 for support for the functioning of business and the economy of Ukraine.

Ukraine accounts for one of the largest investments in the Bank's countries of operations. Following the outbreak of war in February, the Bank immediately condemned the Russian-assisted attack on Ukraine and began preparing a swift financial response. The goal of EBRD assistance is to ensure the resilience of Ukraine and refugee host countries, as well as to participate in the implementation of the recovery plan for Ukraine, when circumstances permit.