site.btaWomen Held Highest Share of Managerial Positions in Judicial and Lowest in Legislative Power in 2024

In 2024, women held the highest relative share of managerial positions in the judicial power (54.1%) and the lowest in the legislative power (23.3%), the National Statistical Institute (NSI) announced on its website on Monday. Men occupy 68.3% of senior managerial positions at the highest management level, while women are best represented at "deputy head" level - 42%. These figures are from the Gender equality in decision-making 2024 survey, which is conducted every three years and covers senior and middle managerial positions involved in decision-making processes within legislative, executive and judicial institutions, and other public authorities in Bulgaria.

Women in managerial positions in the central administration of the executive branch represented 40.9% of all managers, and their share in the territorial administration was 34.6%. The data show that women had a higher relative share in the management of executive agencies (67.4%) and specialized territorial administrations (57.9%) but were not well represented in the management of individual ministries, where 74.7% of managerial positions were held by men.

The previous NSI survey from 2021 showed that, at that time, men held 68.8% of senior managerial positions at the highest level (e.g. minister, chairperson, director or general director). Women were best represented at the "deputy head" level, occupying 41.1% of positions in this category.  Of the three branches of government, women held the highest proportion of leadership positions in the judiciary (53%), followed by the executive branch (35.2%), and the lowest proportion in the legislative branch (24.2%). 

In September 2025, the press office of the Council of Ministers announced that the number of women in leadership positions in Bulgaria is increasing. In 2024, this figure reached 79,000 - an increase of more than 16%, or 11,000, compared to the previous year - according to data from the Report on Gender Equality in Bulgaria for 2024, which was approved by the cabinet at the time.