Pakistan receives €160 million in EIB Global financing for major housing and water projects

This article is published in association with European Investment Bank.

• The EIB’s development arm returns to Pakistan after a decade with EUR 160 million for housing and water projects
• EIB Global credit for the Sindh housing project totals €100 million, supporting the world’s largest ongoing reconstruction programme to rebuild 2.1 million flood-damaged homes in Sindh province
• Loan of €60 million covers construction of filtration plants to provide drinking water to Karachi
• Projects form part of Global Gateway, the European Union’s external investment strategy for sustainable development

The European Investment Bank’s international development arm, EIB Global, is committing a total of €160 million to help Pakistan rebuild homes in the southeastern province of Sindh and to improve water quality in Karachi – the country’s largest city. The pledges mark a return of EIB Global financing in Pakistan after a decade.  

EIB Global is providing a €100 million loan to the Pakistani government for the Sindh housing initiative, which is the world’s largest ongoing reconstruction programme and aims to rebuild around 2.1 million rural homes damaged by devastating floods in 2022. The project has a total cost of almost $2 billion and covers 40% of rural households in Sindh.

EIB Global is also lending €60 million to the Pakistani government for the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation to build two energy-efficient filtration plants in the towns of Gharo and Pipri to the east of Karachi. As a result, Karachi – the capital of Sindh province with a population of more than 20 million – will be supplied with about 300 million litres of clean drinking water per day, enough to meet the needs of 2.2 million residents.

EIB Global and the Pakistani government announced the two loan agreements today during a European Union–Pakistan business forum in Islamabad. The EIB financing forms part of the EU’s “Global Gateway” strategy to mobilise €400 billion of investments in the 2021-2027 period.

“The European Investment Bank’s renewed engagement in Pakistan is a significant step toward strengthening Pakistan’s recovery and long-term resilience. This financing will play a vital role in rebuilding flood-affected communities in Sindh and improving access to safe drinking water in Karachi. These efforts closely align with our priorities of enhancing climate resilience and advancing sustainable infrastructure. We look forward to further deepening our partnership with the EIB and the European Union,” said Pakistani Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Khan Cheema.

“Through our support for the Sindh housing programme and the Karachi water initiative, we are helping Pakistan strengthen climate resilience, improve access to safe drinking water and support inclusive, sustainable development, particularly for the most vulnerable people,” said EIB Vice-President Nicola Beer. “This also marks an important step as the EIB resumes financing in Pakistan after a decade, reaffirming our commitment to support climate resilience and inclusive recovery.”

“The European Union and Pakistan are building a partnership that delivers real improvement in people’s lives – supporting safe homes and access to clean water for communities in Sindh and Karachi. Through Global Gateway, we are investing in quality infrastructure to boost long-term health, safety and prosperity,“ stated European Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Síkela.

“The re-engagement of the EIB in Pakistan is critical for the country to benefit fully from the opportunities deriving from EU’s Global Gateway strategy,” said EU Ambassador to Pakistan Raimundas Karoblis. “We are confident that, in the course of the next few years, much more de-risked investments will be agreed between the EIB and Pakistan.” 

The housing-reconstruction programme in Sindh is also  being supported by the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank and the provincial government. Reconstruction will be based on a plan ensuring that households play a central role in rebuilding their homes in line with  resilience standards that cover the risks of combined or consecutive disasters.

Background information

The EIB Group  

The European Investment Bank (ElB) Group is the financing arm of the European Union, owned by the 27 Member States, and one of the largest multilateral development banks in the world. In 2025, the EIB Group signed €100 billion of new financing and advisory services for over 870 high-impact projects in eight core priorities that support EU policy objectives: climate action and the environment, digitalisation and technological innovation, security and defence, territorial cohesion, agriculture and the bioeconomy, social infrastructure, strong global partnerships and the savings and investment union. Beyond long-term loans for large infrastructures, the EIB Group crowds-in private investment for high-risk innovative projects and businesses, with a growing role in Europe’s markets for venture debt, venture capital, guarantees and securitisations.

The European Investment Fund (EIF) is the subsidiary of the EIB Group specialised in providing guarantees and equity to improve access to finance for small and medium size businesses and startups across Europe. Acting as an anchor investor, through its extensive network of partnering banks and investment funds, the EIF mobilizes private investment and nurtures the ecosystem of venture capital funds to support innovative European entrepreneurs.

EIB Global

EIB Global is the EIB Group’s specialised arm devoted to increasing the impact of international win-win partnerships and development finance, and a key partner of Team Europe and the Global Gateway strategy. EIB Global brings the EIB Group closer to people, companies and institutions through its offices across the world.

Global Gateway

Global Gateway is the EU’s strategy to promote smart, clean, and secure connections in the digital, energy, and transport sectors, while strengthening health, education, and research systems worldwide. It’s the EU contribution to narrowing the global investment gap accompanying the social and just green and digital transitions beyond European borders and boosting competitiveness and security of global supply chains.

Global Gateway is a way to connect Europe and partners across the globe, based on trust, sustainability and mutual interest. It provides investments for transformative, large-scale projects, while offering a respectful and qualitative partnership to our partner countries in line with the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement.

By 2027, Global Gateway aims to mobilise up to €400 billion in investments worldwide by pooling the resources of Team Europe, which brings together the EU, its Member States, financial and development institutions, and European businesses. All Global Gateway projects are designed together with our partners on how best they can benefit from our investment offer to ensure that the results improve their necessary infrastructure and connectivity.

Global Gateway fully respects and promotes international standards of labour protection and respect for human rights, as well as good governance and transparency, which makes the overall approach unique and consolidate a distinctive engagement with partner countries.