site.btaHead of Europe Direct - Vratsa Presents Exhibition Showing Good Practices of European Funds

An exhibition showing good practices and results of the European funds invested under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan was presented by Maria Panayotova, head of the Europe Direct - Vratsa Centre at the Vratsa Chamber of Commerce and Industry, during a local conference held here on Tuesday. The event was part of BTA’s Europe on Balkans: Cohesion Skills project.

The exhibition was made in 2023 and toured Northwestern Bulgaria just as the COVID-19 pandemic was ending. At that time, it showed entrepreneurs that it is possible to use time to modernize their production even in such a crisis, Panayotova pointed out.

The total number of contracts under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan in Vratsa is currently 91, with a total 68 beneficiaries and a total gross financial assistance of over BGN 58 million, she noted, adding that the total value of these 91 contracts is nearly BGN 70 million.

"What we want to pay attention to is what is expected to happen in the next programming period or what will happen with the future long-term budget of the European Union for the period 2028-2034," Panayotova emphasized. She recalled that this month a resolution of the European Parliament was issued with four main points, and it is expected that there will be changes that concern the budget, due to the need for increased competitiveness in Europe, on the one hand, and the geopolitical situation in the world on the other hand. "This requires that the budget for the next programming period must be consistent with these two topics", she stressed.

"Whether we will find our place in this programming period, whether we will benefit from the funds that will be allocated, depends entirely on ourselves as a country and we are optimistic in this direction," Panayotova concluded.