In April 2022, the EBRD’s Board of Governors decided to suspend access to the Bank’s resources by Belarus, in response to its support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Bank has closed its office in Minsk. Belarus continues to be a shareholder of the Bank.
In addition, we remain deeply concerned by the situation with human rights and freedom of speech inside Belarus. Ever since the disputed Presidential election of August 2020, we have urged the authorities to pursue an inclusive national dialogue to explore a way forward.
In the light of our Governors’ decision in April 2022, the Bank has notified relevant borrowers that their right to request any further drawdowns under their loan agreements with EBRD has been suspended.
Furthermore, the Bank notified relevant project entities that their right to any further disbursements under any grant agreements has also been suspended.
In case of additional questions, inquiries can be submitted in writing to: ebrdbelarus@ebrd.com
The EBRD’s latest Belarus strategy was adopted on 7 September 2016
GDP forecast for Belarus’s Real GDP growth in 2023 -1.0%
GDP forecast for Belarus’s Real GDP growth in 2024 1.3%
Widespread sanctions introduced as a result of Belarus’s close cooperation with Russia have constrained business activity and limited export opportunities. As a result, output declined by 4.7 per cent in 2022. The fall was broad-based, involving the usually-resilient information and communication technology sector after many years of consistently high growth in this sector. The uncertainty resulting from the war on Ukraine and export and financing constraints caused a substantial contraction of investment and net exports. Annual inflation dropped to 6.0 per cent in March 2023 on the back of price controls and a strong base effect. As the economy has been gradually adjusting to the restrictive external environment, GDP decline eased to 2.1 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023. A GDP decline of 1.0 per cent is expected in 2023, followed by a modest recovery in 2024, with growth of 1.3 per cent, subject to significant downside risks.
