/ world today news/ Five of the European operational programs “Innovation and Competitiveness”, “Science and Education for Smart Growth”, “Transport and Transport Infrastructure”, “Growth Regions” and “Environment” are about to be suspended. This is understood from the Report of the former, now acting Deputy Prime Minister for European Funds, Malina Krumova, which reviews the work of the past three months.
The new government of Boyko Borisov has two months to fulfill six of the so-called “preconditions” which are laid down in the Partnership Agreement. As of December 2016, Bulgaria had not fulfilled 12 out of a total of 45 preconditions for receiving European funding during the program period 2014-2020.
“For the implementation of the remaining thematic conditions, it is necessary to adopt several strategic documents – the updated National Road Map for Scientific Infrastructure; the updated National Strategy for the Development of Scientific Research, the Innovation Strategy for Intelligent Specialization by May 2017 and the Integrated Transport Strategy by June 2017. The expectations are that the above-mentioned deadlines will be met and that the state will report to the European Commission the fulfillment of all conditions, as is necessary – by June 30 in the Annual Reports on Program Implementation and by August 31 in the Progress Report under the Partnership Agreement”, says Krumova, who until her entry into the caretaker government was part of the team of the Deputy Prime Minister for European Funds, Tomislav Donchev.
From Malina Krumova’s Report, it is also understood that the implementation of a number of European programs has been delayed and there is a potential risk of loss of funds.
The implementation of the Rural Development Program does not guarantee strict compliance with the provisions of the Law on the Management of European Structural and Investment Funds, the document makes clear. “There is also a serious delay in the implementation of the program indicators. There is a significant risk of non-fulfillment of the interim goals and indicators of the implementation framework by 2018. The Ministry of Agriculture and Food has yet to prepare an analysis of the implementation framework with specific figures for priorities, focus areas, measures and sub-measures of the RDP and proposals for the achievement of the set goals”, wrote the official vice-prime minister for European funds.
30% of the staff of the Governing Body of the “Maritime and Fisheries” Program are still not employed, which poses serious challenges to the performance of tasks.
“There is a delay in the implementation of the projects under two of the priority axes of the “Good Governance” program in the field of e-governance, administrative and judicial reforms,” notes Krumova. She also reports difficulties regarding the financing of beneficiaries under the OP “Development of Human Resources”.
The document also reveals that due to the lack of a solution – how to complete the construction of the “Struma” highway in the region of the Kresna gorge, there is already a delay, which may lead to the loss of European funds. “Due to the high probability, part of the activities under Lot 3.2. not to finish in the eligibility period, it is necessary for the Road Infrastructure Agency to plan the construction of a backup project”, notes Malina Krumova. She also specifies that, due to the limited budget of the “Transport and Transport Infrastructure” Operational Program, an additional 400 million euros will be needed to complete the road near Kresna. This money will have to be at the expense of the budget.
There are also serious problems in the implementation of OP “Regions in Growth”. In September, a “major project” should be launched, which is in the field of health infrastructure and will be managed by the Ministry of Health. The financial resource is in the amount of BGN 163.5 million. Due to the late finalization of the strategies for sustainable urban development of the municipalities, not all of the 39 cities that were supposed to receive targeted European funding will be able to do so. This has necessitated the start of discussion on an amendment to the OPRD.
The analysis of the former deputy prime minister on European funds indicates that 19 million euros under the Operational Program “Environment” will probably be lost at the end of 2018. “It is necessary to accelerate the measures related to establishing the responsibilities of owners and operators in the provision of water and sanitation services, the regulation of these services. Legislative changes are also needed to ensure the sustainability of the sector and the ability to recover the costs of investment in infrastructure and its further development without relying on grant funding. It is of the utmost importance that the MRRD recognizes its leading role in the process, including by imposing a political vision. There is a significant risk of non-fulfillment of the indicators in the Framework for the implementation of the program, which will fail the implementation of one of Bulgaria’s key priorities in the field of “Environment”, warns Krumova.
The risks facing OP “Innovations and Competitiveness” are related to the need to redistribute funds from the gas connection project between Bulgaria and Serbia to the one with Greece. So that there are no losses of funds, it is imperative that the amendment of the program be carried out as quickly as possible, as well as that the preparation of the Bulgarian-Greek connection is not delayed in any way.
Krumova assures that the risks to OP “Science and education for intelligent growth”, which was about to be frozen due to problems with the management and control system, have been overcome. However, there is a risk of losing money. “The main action that must be taken in relation to the program is the adoption of a National Strategy for the Development of Scientific Research, which is directly related to the implementation of priority axis 1, avoiding the loss of funds under the budget commitments for 2014 and 2015 and to one of the preconditions”, adds the former acting deputy prime minister.
In conclusion, Krumova, who will most likely return to her previous position – director of the Central Coordination Unit in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which she held from the end of 2014 to the beginning of 2017, notes that for the implementation of the European programs there must be no personnel changes in the system and to “maintain the expert potential to the maximum extent”.
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