In Azerbaijan, the European Investment Bank (EIB) lending commitment totals to 96 million euros since 2014, the Bank told Trend.

The EIB said it has provided 50 million euros loan to International Bank of Azerbaijan, the country's leading bank, to finance projects promoted by SMEs and midcaps.

"Another 45 million euros loans to support the projects of small and medium-sized enterprises have been signed with AccessBank, Azerbaijan’s leading financier of small businesses. These operations will foster the development of the private sector, contributing to job creation and increasing living standards in Azerbaijan," said EIB.

In Azerbaijan, similarly as in other countries of the Eastern Neighbourhood, the Bank’s activities aim at supporting the goals set up by the EU’s European Neighbourhood Policy, according to EIB.

The Bank said it is focused on financing projects that promote prosperity and increased regional integration, which contributes to the stability of these regions and helps forging stronger intraregional partnerships.

The Bank's activities in the region promote growth and employment, intraregional trade, and help to protect our common environment and to mitigate climate change by supporting low carbon and climate resilient growth, said EIB.

Following the mid-term review of the External Lending Mandate (which governs the EIB activity outside the EU), the 4.8 billion euros mandate for 2014-2020 has been increased to 6.65 billion euros, which covers all six EaP countries and Russia, according to the Bank.

"By the end of 2018, EIB lending in the Eastern Partnership had reached over 10 billion euros, financing more than 90 investment projects and providing credit lines to support SMEs in the region. In this context the EIB facilitates:

- local private sector development, in particular support to SMEs,
- development of social and economic infrastructure, and
- climate change mitigation and adaptation.

In 2014 the EIB also set up a Neighbourhood Finance Facility (NFF), a 3 billion euros facility under which financing will be extended at the EIB's own risk (i.e. without EU guarantee) in the Eastern Neighbourhood region, including Russia, and the Southern Neighbourhood (FEMIP) region.

The facility enables the Bank to support EU Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) as well as infrastructure projects such as transport, telecommunications and energy in the region," said EIB.