KfW supports municipalities with EUR 250 million for housing refugees

• “Special Refugee Facilities Programme” under the umbrella of the IKK Investment Loans for Municipalities programme
• Interest rate of minus 0.75%, application possible with immediate effect
• Promotion of municipal companies and non-profit organisations possible via the IKU Investment Loans for Municipal Enterprises Programme

More and more people fleeing the war in Ukraine are reaching Germany. This is why KfW is now supporting cities and municipalities in creating, modernising and equipping refugee facilities. To this end, KfW is launching the “Special Refugee Facilities Programme” for municipalities, providing EUR 250 million from its own funds for this purpose. The special funding for municipalities runs through the established IKK Investment Loans for Municipalities Programme and bears a signal interest rate of minus 0.75 %. The term of this special programme is limited and runs until 31 December 2022. The maximum loan amount is generally EUR 25 million. Municipal companies and non-profit organisations can use the working capital variant of the IKU Investment Loans for Municipal Enterprises programme for refugee aid measures.

With this offer, KfW is building on the highly sought-after “Special Funding for Refugee Accommodation” from 2015, in which around EUR 1.5 billion in aid was committed to the municipalities. Against this background, KfW is supplementing the current efforts of the German Federal Government and the federal states with a targeted, attractive and quickly usable offer to finance investments required in the short term in dealing with the expected increase in refugees.

Stefan Wintels, Chief Executive Officer of KfW, says: “The suffering of the Ukrainian people shocks and moves us. More and more of them are looking for protection and safety with us in Germany. For KfW, solidarity also always means taking action. That’s why we provide financial support to cities and communities in order to provide these people with a dignified refuge and enable them to participate in life in Germany.”