The Vice-Governor of the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) and the Minister of Education and Science of North Macedonia, Jeton Shaqiri, today signed a multi-donor grant agreement worth €3 million for the renovation of physical education facilities in primary and secondary schools, and acquisition of sports equipment. The grant comes from the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF), a joint initiative of the EU, financial organisations, bilateral donors and beneficiaries, and the main vehicle for implementation of the EU’s ambitious Economic and Investment Plan for the Western Balkans.

The grant will benefit more than 52,000 students in North Macedonia and will increase the overall quality of physical education. The newly signed grant is part of a wider programme of investments in education infrastructure in North Macedonia, worth almost €65.8 million and carried out with national, bilateral donor, and CEB funding under the umbrella of the WBIF.

It brings the total WBIF grant contributions to €6 million, and complements €42.5 million in loans from the CEB, as well as €17.3 million in national contributions.