Education

EIB loans for education projects support the establishment of the knowledge economy in the European Union, which is one of the Bank's key lending priorities.

Education projects financed by the EIB cover a wide range of investments, developing education at all levels across the European Union. The Bank has focused primarily on education infrastructure - the construction, expansion and refurbishment of school, college and university buildings.

But it is increasingly involved in what goes on inside the buildings. When financing intangibles ("inside the buildings"), the EIB usually partners with competent national or local authorities. Mainstream education examples include modern teaching programs, improving methods of instruction and funding student loans to enable broader access to education.

EU policy and EIB lending take lifelong learning as the starting point, education from infancy to life in retirement. The Bank can finance investment in pre-school, primary and secondary schooling, technical and vocational education, universities and colleges, distance education and adult education, including for senior citizens.

The educational activities that the EIB supports are not limited to formal institutions. Investment in education may also take place in the work place and communities, for example through apprenticeship training or active labour market programs.

Between 1997, when the EIB started financing investment in education, and the end of 2010, loans worth EUR 20.4bn went to more than 175 projects in the European Union. Outside the EU, the Bank lent over EUR 450m over the same period.