The issue of financing Ukraine's needs should be addressed consistently and taking into account current priorities, today, while the war continues, the main one is financing the deficit in the amount of about $5 billion per month, World Bank Vice President for Europe and Central Asia Anna Bjerde has said.

She told reporters on the sidelines of the Ukraine Recovery Conference that they have to plan sequentially and piecemeal because the war is still going on. The priority now is $ 5 billion, which guarantees that Ukraine will receive the money that it now needs to work and provide services. That's really what keeps us up at night, she said.

Bjerde noted that the World Bank is working hard to attract external funding for these purposes, including through its multi-donor fund.

Speaking of additional funding, the Vice President emphasized the importance of setting priorities, that is, the main sectors that need to be rebuilt. Among them, she named housing, roads, bridges and transport infrastructure, healthcare and education facilities, as well as water and energy supply and mine clearance.

"So I wouldn't say that we need to go and raise $750 billion today [general estimate of the Ukraine Recovery Plan presented by the government in Lugano]. Let's break it down the way the government did it: we need $65 billion [the government's estimate of the necessary funding for the first stage of the plan]," Bjerde said.

She added that a damage assessment is also needed, and the Kyiv School of Economics is doing a good job of that.

"We need to work together to see what we need to do in the first two months, five months, 12 months and so on, because it's too much to just say let's do it in one go. My message is, that the government should be able to continue to provide services, and we need to involve everyone to support Ukraine today – here and now," the World Bank Vice President stressed.