The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Investment Bank (EIB) plan to invest 50-70 mln EUR in development of the Dnieper river as a transport corridor, informed the conference "Dnipro as European waterway", organized under support of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine, reported the press-service of the Ministry.
According to the Ambassador of the Netherlands, Kees Klompenhouwer, development of the agricultural sector provides new challenges to the Ukrainian transport and logistics network. Ukraine has a unique resource, which usage would enable it to become a strategic part of the European economy, it is the Dnieper.
According to the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine, Nadiya Kaznacheyeva, to date the World Bank, the EBRD and EIB are actively involved in the Dnieper development initiative.
According to some experts, the river became the integral element of Ukraine's multimodal transport network. Supporting of agribusiness and promotion of the economic growth requires further improvement of the infrastructure and logistics. The river allows cheaply and environment friendly shipping goods. Ukraine is able to found the clear market conditions on the river, which would improve its infrastructure capacities. However, Ukraine should first realize investments in the river itself.
According to the announcement, in several years the Dnieper will become a part of the Trans-European Transport system E40 Rhine-Danube-Black Sea, A7 Dnieper-Pripyat, Baltic Sea. The idea was supported by Daniel Jacques, representative of the European Commission in Brussels.
