Only a month after the FEMIP[1] Trust Fund announced it was actively seeking resources for its replenishment, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg became the first donor to officially renew its support.

Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker made the announcement for a EUR 1.2 million grant to the trust fund, noting that “by contributing to the development of small and medium enterprises and microfinance, renewable energy, urban development as well as infrastructure development, the FEMIP Trust Fund aims to reach a common goal that Luxembourg strongly advocates: job creation and growth, in particular to support the democratic transition processes in the region”.  

Welcoming the announcement, EIB Vice-President Philippe de Fontaine Vive declared that the FEMIP Trust Fund was currently exchanging views with microfinance organizations based in Luxembourg on possible initiatives for Tunisia and other countries in transition. He expressed confidence that the Trust Fund, which has benefited in the past from the generous support of 15 EU countries and the European Commission, would successfully advance toward a new phase of activities. “If ongoing changes in the Mediterranean region entail new challenges, he said, then our assistance also ought to adapt: this is why we will provide fresh impetus, in particular for small and medium enterprises and youth employment, through new initiatives in the coming weeks carried out by FEMIP. Luxembourg’s renewed confidence therefore comes at a crucial and historical time.”

The FEMIP Trust Fund, the European Investment Bank’s (EIB) operational fund for private sector development in the Mediterranean Partner Countries, provides upstream technical assistance and seed capital, as well as resources targeting private sector development for democratic transformation and job creation. Studies funded by the Trust Fund are available to the public on www.eib.org/ftf.    

 

[1] Facility for Euro-Mediterranean Investment and Partnership