Bulgaria Projects Account for 20% of EU Development Funding

Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner for Regional Policy, speaks during a news conference on the report assessing implementation (2007-2009) of EU cohesion policy programmes at the European Commission headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Photo by EPA/BGNES

Bulgaria, which pours a large part of EU funding for roadworks, should allocate more funds to research and innovations if it wants to catch up with the older member-states, Regional Policy Commissioner Johannes Hahn has recommended.

Commissioner Johannes Hahn and László Andor, Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion Commissioner, presented a report adopted on Wednesday on the EU's cohesion programs for the 2007-2013 period.

“The European funds are not a charity, they secure support for investments, which should benefit everyone,” Hahn added.

A total of EUR 93 B or 27 % of EU funding has been allocated to projects for investment in jobs and growth in Europe over the last three years, according to the report.

The report says Bulgarian authorities work on projects, which account for 20,2% of the eurofunds envisaged for the country till 2013. Five member states trail after Bulgaria, including Greece and Romania. Belgium is the champion in the ranking as it has allocated a total of 61,1% of the EU funding under the cohesion program for the 2007-2013 period.

The report shows how well member states aligned their programs to EU goals of jobs and growth and calls on them to improve the implementation of programs, to make optimal use of the cohesion money, for instance in the rail sector, key energy and environment projects and the field of social inclusion.

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