European Commission disburses RRF payment of 3.64 bln euros to Greece

According to a press release, the Commission paid to Greece the third payment under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF). The payment amounts to 3.64 billion euros (1.69 billion euros in non-repayable financial support and 1.95 billion euros in loans, excluding pre-financing). On 16 May 2023 and on 22 November 2023, Greece submitted to the Commission the third request for payment for non-repayable support and the third request for payment for loans, respectively, covering 39 milestones and four targets. The overall recovery and resilience plan of Greece will be financed by 35.95 billion euros, with 18.22 billion euros in non-repayable support and 17.73 billion euros in loans.

Apart from Greece, Germany received its first payment under the RRF, Italy its fourth,  Portugal received the third and fourth payments combined, Slovakia received its third payment and Slovenia the second.

Papathanassis welcomes announcement

Welcoming the announcement, Alternate National Economy & Finance Minister Nikos Papathanassis said that it is "yet another positive assessment, at a leading European institutional level, for the development course of Greece's economy in general and for the management of the resources of the Recovery & Resilience Fund in particular."

The disbursement of 3.6 billion euros for loans and grants "is directly linked to progress in implementing the loan program and other critical projects and reforms," he added, "such as the digitization of state records and the strengthening of the efficiency of public administration, the digital modernization of Citizen Services Bureaus (KEPs), urban planning, the completion of the training of 150,000 of our fellow citizens, the operation of 50 Mental Health Units, e-mobility, the establishment of a Waste Management Regulatory Authority & Water Resources, among other initiatives", he underlined.

"We continue to make use of every available euro on the road to development with social cohesion, and with the goal of increasing incomes for all our fellow citizens", he stressed.