Maribor - Slovenia's second largest medical centre will get EUR 3.6 million from the European Regional Development Fund for a EUR 4 million investment to move its pulmonary department to a new location in what is the first grant from the React EU crisis response initiative.

Under a decision taken by the Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy, UKC Maribor will get the funds to move its department for lung diseases from an old building on the Pohorje hills to new premises on the main location in Maribor.

The approved investment marks the beginning of an extensive investment drive to boost public healthcare, to be backed by more than half a billion euro in EU grants in the coming years, the office said in a press release on Friday.

"This is an exceptionally important contribution to enhancing the Slovenian health system and an urgent step to ensure resilience for an emergency situation due to the epidemic," the release reads.

The project to secure the department premises meeting the required standard of pulmonary care will be followed up by investments as part of a comprehensive renovation of the medical centres in Maribor and Ljubljana and those boosting the health system in all regions.

React-EU is a EUR 47.5 billion initiative that makes part of the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility. Member states will be able to use the available funding in 2021 and 2022.