12 May 2021: Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Olivér Várhelyi travelled to the Western Balkans last week as the first COVID-19 vaccines, shared and funded by the European Union, arrived to the region. Ahead of the visit, the officials from the European Union and Serbia signed a grant package for Serbia worth over €86 million. The grant package will focus on supporting Serbia in protecting the environment – in particular safe drinking water, supporting the tourism sector and to support small and medium sized enterprises.

04 May 2021: The recently completed EU-funded Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) and Detailed Design for the WBIF project “Mati River Flood Protection Infrastructure” were implemented by COWI-IPF Consortium (Infrastructure Project Facility 8) in close cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Albania and the National Water Resources Management Agency.

28 April 2021: The International Energy Agency characterizes energy efficiency as the “world´s first fuel” because it is the most underestimated resource of all and its potential is still far from exhausted. That holds true for practically every region of the world, but particularly for the Western Balkans. In all WB6 countries the energy productivity remains low, indicating that energy saving measures and investments are not implemented to a large enough extent.

14 April 2021: Through the EU-supported Regional Energy Efficiency Programme for the Western Balkans (REEP/REEP Plus), the KfW has supported the Serbian cardboard packaging manufacturer RVM in Kraljevo to rehabilitate a hall for its production, with a focus on energy efficiency. Previously, the company's production was spread over three buildings, so material and products had to be transported back and forth between the different units with forklift trucks. In addition, the old halls were in poor condition. In 2019, RVM therefore acquired a new building with 10,000 square metres of space, which, however, was also in need of renovation.

08 April 2021: Earlier this week, the keys to 62 newly built apartments in Srebrenik, Bosnia and Herzegovina, were handed to 164 displaced persons, former residents of the collective centres. The construction of the multi-apartment building is part of the larger EU supported project „Housing and Social Integration of Vulnerable Persons Living in Collective Centres“, implemented by the Ministry of Human Rights and Refugees of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

04 April 2021: The European Union and the bilateral donors, the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), have been supporting Subotica’s efforts for the modernisation of its original waste water treatment plant and construction of a sludge line since 2006.

21 March 2021: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is launching a new Green Economy Financing Facility (GEFF) in Montenegro that will provide loans to households for energy efficiency improvements. The programme will benefit from over €27 million in incentives to end borrowers provided by the European Union through the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF).

11 March 2021: The construction of Corridor Vc, a key infrastructure project in Bosnia and Herzegovina, is progressing with new financing from the European Union. On Wednesday, Ms. Manuela Naessl, Head of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development's (EBRD) operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Mr. Vjekoslav Bevanda, the BIH Minister of Finance and Treasury signed two agreements for an additional €20.9 million in EU grants to support the completion of two sections on Corridor Vc: Buna-Počitelj and tunnel Zenica-Donja Gračanica. Ambassador Johann Sattler, Head of the EU Delegation to BiH and EU Special Representative in BiH also attended the signing ceremony.

24 February 2021: Last week, loan agreement for the WBIF project 'Trans-Balkan Electricity Corridor: Obrenovac – Bajina Bašta Grid Section in Serbia' was signed by Minister of Mining and Energy Zorana Mihajlović, European Integration Minister Jadranka Joksimović, Director of Serbian Transmission System Operator (EMS) Jelena Matejić, and the Head of the KfW Bank Office in Serbia, Rüdiger Hartmann. The German Ambassador to Belgrade, Thomas Schieb, also attended the event.

18 February 2021: Serbia’s largest tertiary care facility is getting a complete overhaul to meet current energy efficiency, health and safety standards. The planned renovation – supported by an EU grant and a KfW loan – will make hospital operations run more smoothly, save energy and water, and thus lower the maintenance costs in the long run. In addition, the working environment for the medical staff will be improved, as well as the overall comfort for patients.

03 February 2021: The first large-scale overhaul of the railway network in Albania is ready to start with the signing of a contract for rehabilitation works between the state railways and the Italian company INC Spa. This project is supported by the European Union (EU) with an investment grant of €35.5 million under its 'Connectivity Agenda for the Western Balkans' and by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) with a €36.9 million loan. Additional €2.75 million in grants from bilateral donors have been secured through the Western Balkans Investment Framework.