EU Commission Disburses First $3.5Bln From Post-Pandemic Recovery Fund

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th August, 2021) The European Commission paid out the first 3 billion Euros ($3.5 billion) to Luxembourg, Belgium and Portugal on Tuesday from the EU-wide fund allocated to support member states during the coronavirus crisis.

The Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) was established to provide up to 723.8 billion euros to support reforms and projects in EU member states post-pandemic. Before allocating the funds, the Commission reviews recovery plans presented by member states based on country-specific recommendations and assesses whether they dedicate at least 37% of expenditure to climate objectives, and 20% to the digital transition.

"The European Commission has today disbursed ��12.1 million to Luxembourg in pre-financing, equivalent to 13% of the country's financial allocation. Luxembourg is one of the first countries receiving a pre-financing payment under the Recovery and Resilience Facility," the Commission said in a statement.

Belgium and Portugal received 770 million and 2.2 billion euros, respectively.

"Today's disbursement follows the recent successful implementation of the first borrowing operations under NextGenerationEU. By the end of the year, the Commission intends to raise up to a total of ��80 billion in long-term funding, to be complemented by short-term EU-Bills, to fund the first planned disbursements to Member States under NextGenerationEU," the statement read.

The RRF was agreed upon by European leaders in July 2020 as part of NextGenerationEU, a temporary recovery instrument designed to mobilize investments and jump-start Europe's economy, battered by the COVID-19 pandemic.