site.btaStara Zagora Hosts Forum on Bulgaria's Accession to OECD

The southern city of Stara Zagora is hosting a forum on Bulgaria and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in the Context of National Economic Development and the Green Transition. The forum, which opened Thursday and will be on until Friday, is being organized by the Diplomatic Institute of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The first day was attended by the Polish Deputy Ambassador to Bulgaria Anna Janiszewska-Fraczek, the First Secretary for Economic Affairs at the Embassy of Hungary in Bulgaria Nandor Zemniczky, and the Trade Attaché of the Trade Representation of Turkiye in Plovdiv Armagan Al.

The forum was opened by Stara Zagora Municipal Council chair Iveta Lazarova, who welcomed the guests to what she called "the greenest city in Bulgaria". She expressed hope that the exchange of experience during the conference will be useful for all countries and contribute to the process of Bulgaria's accession to the OECD.

"The purpose of the forum we are organizing is to clearly state Bulgaria's priority for membership in the OECD," said Tanya Mihailova, Director of the Diplomatic Institute. She noted that there are many dimensions to it, which are not only at the national level, but also at the local and regional level. "We are glad that there are also foreign guests who will share their experience, but above all, we will expect to hear what the local representatives of the business and the trade unions have to say," Mihailova said.

Mihailova pointed out that Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia are the last three member states of the European Union that have not yet joined the OECD and added that when a country is a member of the OECD, it automatically means that the investment climate and business environment are good, suitable for investments and the practices in that country can be trusted.

Ivanka Tasheva, Director of the Foreign Economic Relations and Development Cooperation Directorate at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, noted that Bulgaria's candidacy for membership in the OECD is a foreign economic priority that enjoys wide support and is being worked hard on.

Deputy Economy and Industry Minister Nikolay Pavlov and Deputy Innovation and Growth Minister Krasimir Yakimov are also among the participants in the forum.