site.btaNo Water Crisis in Bulgaria at Present - Deputy PM

There is effectively no water crisis in Bulgaria at the moment, Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Zafirov said during Friday’s parliamentary Question Time. Zafirov also chairs the National Water Board.

Some 30,000 people remain without access to drinking water, as well as two Bulgarian towns, with the number of those affected having decreased nearly fourfold during the Board’s mandate, he said. According to him, this is due to a combination of factors, including climatic ones.

The Danube River is a potential source of drinking water and especially of water for irrigation, Zafirov said. The Government has both a programme and a strategy for the use of water resources, he added in response to a question from independent MP Vanya Vasileva about the executive branch’s vision for using Danube water for irrigation.

The continuation of the investment programme for municipal projects is planned, with a total maximum value of EUR 920 million in 2026, the Deputy Prime Minister said. Claims that funding has been suspended are political speculation, he commented. Companies’ payments have not been stopped; there is some delay for part of them, and advances will be paid because payments had been delayed, Zafirov added.