Germany and WBIF Supports Improvement of Student Dormitories of Student City with EUR 26 million Investments
Today, Minister of Finance and Economy Ms. Delina Ibrahimaj and Director of KfW Office Tirana Ms. Brit Horschke signed agreements for Energy Efficient Rehabilitation of Student City I Dormitories with a total value of EUR 21 million, provided by the German Federal Government through KfW Development Bank in addition to a EUR 4.78 million grant agreement provided by the Western Balkans Investment Facility (WBIF). These funds add to the EUR 9.4 million in grant funds already committed by the German Government through KfW Development Bank to the same purpose.
The Project encompasses energetic rehabilitation of dormitories and construction of at least 3 new buildings based on the Student City I Master-plan. These rehabilitations will be based on structural energy audits of 19 dormitories to be carried out during the “Program for the energy efficient rehabilitation of Dormitories of the University of Tirana, Albania”.
Purposes of the project:
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Increase the energy efficiency of selected public buildings - Electric energy consumption will decrease by an average of 20% compared to consumption levels before rehabilitation. The 3 new dormitories will be low-energy constructions;
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Promote social infrastructure for underprivileged students - A minimum of 70% of the capacity of the rehabilitated dormitories will be occupied by students with an inflation-adjusted income of less than EUR 108.
In Albania, KfW is responsible for the implementation of German Financial Cooperation projects. It provides grant aid and concessional loans for key investments and project-related consultancy services. German cooperation with Albania started in 1988. Since then, the German Government has committed more than one billion EUR for development projects and programs. The energy sector is a priority area within the scope of German Financial Cooperation with Albania, with more than 501 million EUR committed since 1988.
The WBIF is a joint initiative of the European Commission, the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Investment Bank (EIB), bilateral donors and Western Balkans beneficiaries launched in December 2009 with the purpose to deliver finance and technical assistance for strategic investments. The KfW and the World Bank subsequently joined the platform. In December 2018, the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) became a participating organisation in the WBIF.