site.btaBulgaria Hosts Regular Meetings of International Monetary Fund, World Bank Group

Bulgaria Hosts Regular Meetings of International Monetary Fund, World Bank Group

Sofia, May 30 (BTA) - Bulgaria on Saturday hosted the regular
meetings of an International Monetary Fund constituency group
and World Bank Group organizations of which it is member.

Meeting with representatives of the two institutions, Prime
Minister Boyko Borissov said that the government is working to
ensure the political stability of Bulgaria and to improve its
international reputation.

"In the first six months, our government focused its efforts on
addressing urgent problems but now we can turn to long-term
prospects," said Borissov at the meeting which was attended by
Finance Minister Vladislav Goranov.

Borissov outlined the efforts of the Bulgarian government to
ensure the country's financial stability, fight against
corruption and grey economy and the implementation of key
reforms to Laura Tuck, World Bank Vice President for Europe and
Central Asia,
Mamta Murthi, World Bank Country Director for Central Europe and
the Baltic Republics and IMF Director for Europe Poul Thomsen.

World Bank Vice President Tuck commended the Bulgarian
government and supported its efforts to carry out reforms in key
sectors.

Tuck expressed support for the government's programme, efforts
at reforms and readiness to provide assistance in enhancing
interinstitutional relations and improving efficiency of public
expenditures.

The meeting discussed the election of a new central bank
governor. The Prime Minister assured the IMF and World Bank
officials that efforts are made so that the new governor is
supported by all parties. Borissov voiced confidence that the
process will be concluded soon.

Business conditions in Bulgaria are improving and there are
expectations for growth in all sectors of economy, particularly
in industry and construction, said Finance Minister Vladislav
Goranov at Saturday's meeting of the IMF and the World Bank
Group in Sofia.

First quarter data suggest increased economic activity, he
added.

Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) Governor Ivan Iskrov also welcomed
participants in the meeting. He noted that four countries of
Bulgaria's constituency group at the IMF and World Bank joined
the EU
in recent years and these are Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia and
Cyprus. He added that Ukraine is also in the track of EU
integration.

Iskrov noted that between 1999 and 2014 the real GDP growth
among Bulgaria group was 25 per cent. Their economies have
attracted an overall 2 trillion US dollars in foreign direct
investments and invested another 1.9 trillion US dollars, he
added.

The group includes Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,
Cyprus, Georgia, Israel, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, the
Netherlands, Romania, Ukraine, Belgium and Luxembourg.


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