The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) considers the demining of agricultural land in Ukraine an important financial issue that it is ready to address in the coming years, said EBRD board member Artem Shevalev on Tuesday during the agro-session of the "Your country first – Win with us" project, organized by the Pinchuk Foundation at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
"This involves financing not only for farmers but also for companies engaged in demining. We feel prepared to finance this, as we have the financial capacity," noted Shevalev.
He reminded that the Ukrainian government launched an experimental demining financing program starting in 2024 to make this product accessible to farmers.
"The EBRD is currently working with other financiers and collaborating with the Ministry of Economy on some programs aimed at supporting farmers in financing demining efforts on their fields," the bank's board member indicated.
He clarified to Interfax-Ukraine that funding could be allocated in two directions: through Ukrainian banks directly to agricultural companies and farmers, potentially with additional government support that may provide guarantees or interest rate compensations, as well as to demining companies for their growth and expansion of demining equipment and personnel, given that the market is not yet saturated.
Overall, Shevalev emphasized that the EBRD supports Ukrainian agricultural companies, both directly through large agricultural corporations and indirectly via partner Ukrainian banks for small farmers.
"If you want to feed millions of people (around the world), you need to produce goods on an industrial scale. Ukraine excels in this. The EBRD will continue to move in this direction, but we will need support. Neither the EBRD alone, nor the World Bank alone, nor the EIB alone can finance this for one simple reason: Ukraine is the largest country on the European continent, and its size is too vast for anyone to tackle this issue alone," stressed the EBRD representative.
He reminded that in recent years, Ukraine has finally transitioned its land into a commodity form, allowing land ownership by farmers, which is a significant breakthrough from a financial perspective.
At the same time, Shevalev pointed out that the end of the war is absolutely necessary for more rapid progress in financing the agricultural sector, as military risks remain high, making it difficult to use land as collateral.
The board member recalled that in 2024, the EBRD approved projects for Ukraine amounting to EUR 2.4 billion, a record figure, although it is just a drop in the ocean compared to what Ukraine needs.