Working paper: Sovereign Financing in Eurasia: Trends and Areas

In 2023, international financial institutions and development agencies approved a total of US $6.2 billion (337 operations) in sovereign financing for Eurasian countries, including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. This highlights the significant role these institutions play in funding these countries.

The report outlines three key aspects of sovereign financing in 2023. Firstly, multilateral development banks (MDBs) were the primary donors in the region, accounting for 91.2%, or US $5.6 billion of the total funding. The remaining financing was provided by development agencies and climate funds. MDBs also led in providing stabilization support.

Secondly, investment financing from MDBs was the key contributor to the Sustainable Development Goals. Additionally, stabilization programs have increasingly focused on the climate agenda.

Thirdly, governments showed high interest in technical assistance in public administration and economic development.

The report continues efforts by the EFSD Chief Economist Group to develop the Sovereign Financing Database (SFD). Launched in 2022, this unique research project collects data on the activities of international financial institutions and development agencies in the countries comprising the macro-region. The SFD uses a variety of open-source information, including the official websites of international financial institutions, their reports and other primary data. The methodology allows collecting data on various types of sovereign financing such as stabilization and investment loans, grants and technical assistance projects.

“In 2024, a new element incorporated in the SFD is data on funding provided by China’s development institutions. These investments prioritize infrastructure projects that are part of the Belt and Road initiative and energy projects. The SFD contains information on 161 sovereign financing operations from 2008 to 2021, totaling US $12.1 billion. Most financing comes from two Chinese banks – the Export-Import Bank of China and the China Development Bank, collectively accounting for US $10.2 billion, or 84.3% of the total,” said Sergey Ulatov, Deputy Managing Director — EFSD Chief Economist.

• Download

  PDF, 7.67 Mb