Bulgaria is ready to negotiate with the European Commission about the following programme period

On 13 November 2012 the European Commission has presented its formal Position on the development of Partnership Agreement and the priorities for funding under EU funds in Bulgaria during the following programme period. This marks the beginning of the country's negotiations with the European Commission about the fields for operational programme funding by 2020.

The document identifies the general and country-specific challenges by presenting the European Commission's attitudes towards Bulgaria's main funding priorities that will stimulate economic growth, employment and business environment improvement.

"The European Commission's position is not a report on Bulgaria's progress - it is the framework, the starting point of a dialogue on the drafting of a Partnership Agreement and operational programmes by 2020", state the EU Funds Management Minister Tomislav Donchev. The Minister added that there is an intensive process in Bulgaria of defining strategic goals and development goals, and the spheres that need to be funded by EU in the following programme period are clear to the state.

In its position about Bulgaria the Commission has proposed five mutually reinforcing funding priorities having potential contribution to sustainable growth and jobs creation. These are the priorities that EC has defined as the most urgent for the country and that it would like to co-finance during the following programme period. Priority spheres are related to labour market participation, innovation-favourable business environment, infrastructure development, efficient management of resources in economy and public administration and judicial system capacity.

As a follow-up to the negotiations initiated on 13 November, by mid-2013 Bulgaria must draft the EC Partnership Agreement and the texts of the new operational programmes, as well as to report on the progress in conforming to the preliminary arrangements set by the European Commission as the mandatory condition for making reforms in efficient investment of EC funds during the following programme period.

In the picture: (left to right) - Mr. Jerzy Plewa, Deputy Director-General of DG Agriculture and Rural Development; Mr. Walter Deffa - Director-General of DG Regional Policy, Mr. Tomislav Donchev, EU Funds Management Minister; Mr. Peter Stub Jorgensen, Head of Social Market Economy of EU Member States Directorate and Mr. Stefanos Samaras, Head of Structural Measures Department at Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.