BGK investing in tourism for the East

Poland's State Development Bank (BGK) will grant PLN 200 million in loans to entrepreneurs in eastern Poland in order to promote and facilitate the development of tourism there, a joint statement from Poland's Development Ministry and the National Bank (BGK) announced in a press release on Thursday. "[We] signed an agreement worth PLN 200 million [that] will support SME's [by] making available loans on preferential terms [that will] enable companies to make new investments," said Adam Hamryszczak, the Deputy Minister of Development. The money made available, which will come mainly from EU funds targeted specifically for tourism development in eastern Poland, is part of a PLN 350 million-program entitled "Entrepreneurial Eastern Poland, Tourism." "The development of tourism contributes to the economic growth of the region, and the financial products will be directed precisely to SME's," said board member of BGK Przemysław Cieszyn. The tender for the selection of financial intermediaries who are to provide support to entrepreneurs will take place at the end of the first quarter of 2017, according to the release.