site.btaEuropean Year for Development Inaugurated for Bulgaria

European Year for Development Inaugurated for Bulgaria

Sofia, March 19 (BTA) - The European Year for Development was
inaugurated for Bulgaria by Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov during
 a conference in Sofia on Thursday.

The EU has proclaimed 2015 a special year for development. It is
 the first ever European Year to deal with the EU's external
action and Europe's role in the world.

Mitov said the European Year for Development is a necessary and
timely initiative for the EU countries and particularly for
Bulgaria. According to him, it is important to realize that the
EU development policy is both an expression of solidarity with
the developing countries and an investment in the stability and
prosperity of the EU itself.

In a videotaped message to the conference, European Commission
Vice President for Budget and Human Resources Kristalina
Georgieva said that Europe is an economic powerhouse and even
after seven years of crisis it still produces 20 per cent of the
 world's gross domestic product. The EU contributes half of the
world's development funding and humanitarian aid. "We do it
because our citizens want us to do it," Georgieva remarked.

Despite the difficulties in the last few years, Europe offers
much better living conditions than the conditions available to
hundreds of millions of people in countries affected by poverty,
 hunger, conflicts and disasters, she said. "When the people
have no food, shelter and hope, when they have no jobs, when
they see their children die of hunger, this creates conditions
for extremist sentiment, and therefore fighting against poverty
is fighting for peace and stability, for prosperity in the
world," Georgieva said.

Ognyan Zlatev, Head of the European Commission Representation in
 Bulgaria, said that the European Year for Development is a time
 to implement the Millennium Development Goals that the world
agreed to reach in 2000, which range from reducing extreme
poverty and hunger to improving the health of mothers to
stopping the spread of HIV/AIDS to providing primary education
for all children.

Taking a journalist's question about whether Bulgaria has any
development projects for Ukraine, Foreign Minister Mitov said
such projects are being prepared. Bulgaria intends to work more
actively with Moldova and the Western Balkans, he said, adding
that institutional development will be one of the main pillars
of the policy of development.