diff --git a/debian/bin/gencontrol.py b/debian/bin/gencontrol.py
index c994e98ac..42690008f 100755
--- a/debian/bin/gencontrol.py
+++ b/debian/bin/gencontrol.py
@@ -63,6 +63,10 @@ class Gencontrol(Base):
         })
 
         # Prepare to generate template-substituted translations
+        try:
+            os.mkdir('debian/po')
+        except OSError:
+            pass
         for path in glob.glob('debian/templates/po/*.po'):
             target = 'debian/po/' + os.path.basename(path)
             with open(target, 'w') as f: