A 220 million euro loan to Greece was announced on Friday by the European Investment Bank to fund civil protection from floods, wildfires, and other natural disasters, such as earthquakes.
The loan is part of the EIB Group’s EU-wide Climate Adaptation Plan and follows an initial loan to Greece of 375 million euros in January 2021, which brings the total EIB support for Greek civil protection and disaster preparedness to 595 million euros.
The two fundings, in 2021 and 2024, represent the first targeted direct EIB support for civil protection and disaster preparedness in Greece and is the largest amount of EIB aid for disaster management and response in Europe.
A plan to restructure civil protection in Greece
Greece was hit by deadly wildfires in 2017 and 2018, while further devastating wildfires swept the country in 2021 and 2023, followed by catastrophic flooding in September 2023.
“This support will help the country respond more quickly and effectively when disaster strikes, protect lives, and better prepare for natural disasters and pandemics,” said EIB Vice-President Kyriacos Kakouris.
The funding from the EIB will be used to materialize the multi-year Greek “Aegis” plan to strengthen the country’s civil protection mechanism through the acquisition of fire engines, firefighting planes and helicopters, drones, rescue vehicles, and the operation of control centers.
The program, to be implemented until 2025, aspires to restructure civil protection in Greece to enable quicker responses, strengthen local preparedness and coordination, and improved equipment.
“It is a significant, emblematic program for which Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis secured funds worth €2.1 billion euros with the aim of upgrading the civil protection and protecting the country against the natural disasters caused by the rapidly evolving climate crisis across the planet” said Greek Minister of Crisis Management and Civil Protection Vassilis Kikilias.
All of the projects have been put to tender, and are progressing to the next stage, their contractualization, he added.
New equipment and regional civil protection teams
The new support covers state-of-the-art equipment for the Hellenic Fire Service, including helicopters and aircraft to fight wildfires and conduct evacuations in medical emergencies, says the EIB announcement.
Disaster prevention, preparedness, and response will be transformed by the creation of 13 regional civil protection teams and new communications networks and information-technology systems across the country.
Experts from the Greek government and EIB have been working together since the 2021 loan agreement and will continue to do so under the new funding accord to use best practices from across Europe.
“The EIB, through its Advisory Services Hub, and the Greek authorities will share best practices during the implementation of the investments and enable experience from this visionary scheme to benefit future projects backed by the EIB elsewhere,” said Kakouris.
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