July 22 (SeeNews) - The European Union (EU) has provided a 12.5 billion euro ($14.4 billion) budget for pre-accession assistance funds for the period between 2021 and 2027, the head of the EU delegation to Serbia, Sem Fabrizi, said on Wednesday.
"The enlargement policy is in the long-term budget of the EU in the form of pre-accession funds of 12.5 billion euro, and Serbia is the largest economy in this part of the region," Fabrizi said in a video file posted on the website of public broadcaster RTS.
The budget is focused on the green economy, the digital agenda and other areas that will benefit both Serbia and the entire region, Fabrizi said.
After four-day negotiations in Brussels, the EU leaders agreed on a 750 billion euro Next Generation recovery package from a total financing of 1.82 trillion euro for 2021-2027 that will help the bloc to rebuild after the coronavirus pandemic and will support investment in the green and digital transitions, the EU Council said in a statement on Tuesday.
The introduction of the Next Generation package is positive for the countries in the Western Balkans, as the economic recovery of the EU would stimulate the economic growth of the entire region, Fabrizi said.
A total of 390 billion euro will be distributed in the form of grants to member states and 360 billion euro in loans under the Next Generation package.
($ = 0.868419 euro)