EBRD Sets New Investment Record in Central Asia, Doubling 2023 Figures

January 16, 2025 — The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has achieved a new operational milestone in Central Asia, investing €2.26 billion across 121 projects in six regional economies during 2024. This represents a near doubling of its annual investment in the region compared to 2023, with an additional €784 million mobilized from co-financiers, bringing the total investment in the region’s real sector to over €3 billion.

Uzbekistan (€938 million) and Kazakhstan (€913 million) were the primary recipients of EBRD funding, also becoming the fifth and sixth largest investment destinations for the Bank globally. Other Central Asian nations also received substantial investment: €264 million for projects in Mongolia, €88 million in Tajikistan, and €52 million in the Kyrgyz Republic.

A significant portion of the Bank’s funds (61%) supported sustainable infrastructure projects, while 24% of loans were allocated to local banks for on-lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), women and young entrepreneurs, and for climate resilience and resource efficiency. The remaining 15% was directed towards corporate sector clients. Reflecting its commitment to sustainability, 58% of EBRD investments—making it the region’s largest green lender—supported green economy projects, aligning fully with the Paris Agreement.

In 2024, the EBRD’s cumulative investment in Kazakhstan surpassed €10 billion, while in Uzbekistan, it reached €5 billion. Both Tajikistan and the Kyrgyz Republic have now received over €1 billion from the EBRD since operations began 30 years ago. Numerous innovative projects were financed, including Central Asia’s first renewable hydrogen facility in Uzbekistan, supported by a US$65 million (€59 million) EBRD financing package to ACWA Power. Other notable projects included the construction of a new wastewater treatment plant in Aktobe, Kazakhstan—the EBRD’s largest municipal project in the region to date—and an investment in a green bond issuance by Khan Bank in Mongolia, the first such bond listed on the Mongolian Stock Exchange. The EBRD also made its first direct equity investment in the critical raw materials sector in Central Asia, acquiring a stake in Sarytogan Graphite Limited in Kazakhstan, and invested in the partial privatization of Kazakhstan’s flagship carrier, Air Astana.

Further investments focused on enhancing the sustainability of national grid operators in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, facilitating the integration of renewable energy sources. Social infrastructure also received support, with the EBRD playing a key role in Kazakhstan’s first major public-private partnership (PPP) project: a €365 million financing package for a new hospital in Kokshetau. Road rehabilitation and bridge construction in Uzbekistan, along with a new hospital in Darkhan, Mongolia, and transport improvements in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, also received EBRD funding. The bank’s Green Cities program and projects aimed at improving water use efficiency further highlighted its commitment to sustainable development in the region. The EBRD also continued its support for SMEs through access to finance, advisory services, and training programs, including the expansion of its start-up initiative, Star Venture, into Tajikistan. As the largest institutional investor in Central Asia, the EBRD has to date financed 1,163 green and inclusive projects totaling €21.5 billion.

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