The Council of Europe Development Bank: implementing the Reykjavik Declaration
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly
debate on 30 September 2024 (25th sitting) (see Doc. 16042, report of the Committee on Social Affairs, Health and
Sustainable Development, rapporteur: Ms Eka Sepashvili). Text adopted by the Assembly on
30 September 2024 (25th sitting).See also Recommendation 2282 (2024).
1. The Council of Europe Development
Bank (CEB or “the bank”) is Europe’s oldest multilateral development
bank and an enlarged partial agreement of the Council of Europe.
Ever since its creation in 1956, the CEB has promoted social cohesion
by investing in people, jobs, socio-economic inclusion and resilient living
environments. The bank’s mission covers the response to multifaceted
social challenges, including the integration of migrants, displaced
persons and refugees, the financing of affordable housing and vital infrastructure
for healthcare, education, training, administration and the judicial
sector, as well as the rehabilitation of cultural heritage, the
handling of natural disasters, sustainable urban and rural development, microfinance
and, more recently, support for the reconstruction of Ukraine.
2. During the 4th Summit of Heads of State and Government of
the Council of Europe in Reykjavik (16-17 May 2023), member States
acknowledged the added value the CEB can provide to support the reconstruction
of Ukraine and encouraged the bank to focus on the social dimensions
of climate change and environmental degradation. These expectations,
as expressed in the Reykjavik Declaration, are aligned with the
orientations of the CEB’s Strategic Framework for 2023-2027 which
sets three overarching goals: responding to social development needs
and inclusion challenges; investing in comprehensive assistance
to refugees and migrants (including capacity building for the future);
and providing targeted support to Ukraine (reconstruction and rehabilitation
of various social sectors).
3. The Parliamentary Assembly appreciates the gradual expansion
of the CEB’s membership. It welcomes the accession of Andorra in
2020 and Ukraine in 2023. The Assembly strongly encourages the following
five States – Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Monaco and the United
Kingdom – to become members at the earliest opportunity. Their membership
would enhance the CEB’s capacity for action in the face of the huge
social challenges all across Europe and would help support Ukraine,
the bank’s newest member, with vast and urgent social needs in times
of war.
4. The Assembly commends the CEB for its continued prudent management
of capital resources and reserves, fully regained triple-A credit
rating, increased visibility, leadership in the issuing of social
inclusion bonds and timely capital increase. It stresses that the
highest possible participation by the member States in this capital
increase would be desirable. The Assembly also notes the importance
of grant support (for investment and technical assistance) in addition
to loans, against the background of the growing complexity of CEB-managed
projects and the specific challenges linked to operations in Ukraine.
It therefore encourages member States to consider further mobilising
additional resources for the bank’s action to match the ambitions set
out in the Reykjavik Declaration.
5. The Assembly notes that the CEB’s work in the past five years
has been considerably affected by several disruptive developments:
the Covid-19 pandemic, the war of aggression against Ukraine, large-scale
natural disasters and the acceleration of the climate crisis. Social
vulnerabilities were thus amplified in member States in addition
to the already existing challenges. The Assembly congratulates the
CEB for its flexible and tailored support to its member States in
the context of the pandemic and natural disasters, such as in the
case of the February 2023 earthquakes in Türkiye, the rapid assistance
to Ukrainian refugees and the swift accession procedure for Ukraine
to join the bank, thus enabling the start of operations in the country.
6. The Assembly views the CEB’s continued support to its member
States in their efforts to honour commitments under the United Nations
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as highly valuable. The stocktaking
on progress so far shows that additional efforts are needed on the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to reduce the risk of poverty
and social exclusion, which still affect about one fifth of the
population in European countries. Moreover, fostering resilience
and tackling climate change (SDG 13) is a complex challenge that
requires greater collective action and an accelerated transition
to more sustainable development models at national level. The CEB
has also supported the achievement of SDG 11 (sustainable cities
and communities), thereby contributing as well to reducing inequalities
under SDG 10.
7. The CEB’s close co-operation with international partners,
such as the European Union, international financial institutions
and the specialised agencies of the United Nations, is of utmost
importance to maximise the impact of projects. This co-operation
enables investment co-ordination for the realisation of regional projects,
facilitates access to financing for countries that are candidates
or potential candidates to accession to the European Union and provides
multilateral technical assistance to individual countries or sectoral
action. The Assembly hails this effort and encourages the CEB to
further reinforce its co-operation with partner institutions, notably
the European Union and peer multilateral development banks.
8. Bearing in mind the CEB’s mission, its Strategic Framework
for 2023-2027, the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
and the Reykjavik Declaration, the Assembly invites the bank to persevere
in:
8.1 responding flexibly to
social developments and inclusion challenges in its member States
by:
8.1.1 bringing the projects even closer to beneficiaries
at the local level;
8.1.2 consistently applying a vulnerability lens to screen and
finance projects with the highest social impact;
8.1.3 strengthening its focus on target group countries through
the provision of more grants, technical assistance and capacity
building to support the preparation and implementation of social
projects with the highest potential impact;
8.1.4 contributing to the financing of projects that improve
the provision and accessibility of quality public services;
8.1.5 promoting microfinance and social enterprises financing,
in particular for vulnerable population groups that lack access
to credit and socio-economic opportunities (young entrepreneurs,
farmers, women, migrants);
8.1.6 specifically addressing the needs of the most vulnerable
population, including Roma communities;
8.1.7 considering, where relevant, the annual conclusions of
the European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) and country-specific
recommendations of other Council of Europe bodies;
8.2 investing in assistance to migrants, their integration
and social inclusion at the local and regional levels;
8.3 gradually enhancing support for the Ukrainian Government
in recovery, reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts in social
sectors, with particular attention to housing, public health and
the special needs of the most vulnerable population groups, notably
children, the elderly, persons with disabilities and those injured
during the war;
8.4 focusing on the social dimensions of climate change and
environmental degradation, as highlighted in the Reykjavik Declaration,
with a view to fostering a just transition towards a green economy
and allowing vulnerable groups to adapt as well as possible to the
effects of climate change;
8.5 considering the issuance of sustainable development bonds
to raise additional funds for projects that underpin transition
to more sustainable development models;
8.6 continuing to engage and co-operate more closely with
partner institutions such as the European Union and multilateral
development banks;
8.7 actively pursuing its close links and joint objectives
with the Council of Europe, both at the operational level and through
strategic alignment;
8.8 ensuring that funded projects are chosen and designed
so that they also contribute to the preservation and protection
of the environment.
