Projects will be reviewed in days, not months, as has been the case in the past –

/ world today news/ «The biggest difficulty so far has been waiting for approval when applying for operational programs. Delays in considering a project are of the order of six months to two years, and even if it is approved, the technologies described in the project are outdated in the meantime”, shared entrepreneurs in an energy repair enterprise in Sofia.

Mrs. Yotova said that in the new program period, the government of Plamen Oresharski has taken the necessary steps to consider the projects in a matter of days, and not in months, as it was before. “The good news for small and medium-sized enterprises is that there will be more money under OP “Competitiveness” and that the bureaucracy in the management of the program has been reduced to a minimum,” said Iliana Yotova.

“I think it is mandatory for ministries to send feedback to those whose projects for European funding are rejected. This will improve transparency, and the business will know what mistakes to avoid in the next application,” said Ms. Yotova.
According to her, our foreign diplomatic missions should make more efforts to create conditions and contacts for the development of Bulgarian enterprises in foreign markets. “The state must protect its entrepreneurs abroad when their interests are harmed. European funds will help businesses only when there is a successful national policy for economic development. The efforts of one ambassador are not enough, it is necessary for the state administration to stand with all its weight behind the Bulgarian enterprises when competitions in another country that they have won are cancelled.”

Later, Mrs. Yotova met with residents of Filipovtsi district in the capital. The European Union allocates a huge budget for the socially disadvantaged, including the Roma, but this money sinks somewhere, people said. “We want stricter control from you on the municipality and those who spend our money”, they also said. According to Mrs. Yotova, it is very important for children to go to school and receive at least a minimum education, so that they can more easily find a job. “In our country, we talk more about the integration of the Roma than actually doing anything. The municipality is indebted to the residents of Filipovtsi, because they cannot demand only expensive rents without improving basic living conditions,” said Mrs. Yotova. She promised to equip a special room for boxing training with the permission of the headmaster of the 103rd school.