site.btaEconomy Minister Meets with Austrian Business People to Discuss Public Procurement Legislation

Economy Minister Meets with Austrian Business People to Discuss Public Procurement Legislation

Sofia, February 25 (BTA) - Bulgarian Economy Minister Bozhidar
Loukarski told Austrian business people on February 24 that the
Public Procurement Act is perhaps the most frequently amended
piece of legislation in Bulgaria, which creates a sense of
uncertainty, the Economy Ministry reported. Loukarski expressed
hope that an all new Public Procurement Act will become a fact
in the second half of this year and will no longer be amended.

The Economy Minister had a meeting in Sofia with the Austrian
Business Circle, an informal gathering of Austrian firms doing
business in Bulgaria. The business executives raised questions
about what they see as flaws of public procurement legislation
in this country.

The new bill is being drafted by a working group headed by
Deputy Prime Minister for EU Funds and Economic Policy Tomislav
Donchev, Loukarski said. He encouraged the Austrian employers to
 make proposals on the matter.

Building an electronic public procurement system is a major
priority of the Economy Ministry and is one of the measures to
curb corruption and raise the confidence of international
companies in Bulgaria, Loukarski said.

He presented the Economy Ministry's plans about tapping the full
 potential of Bulgaria's trade, economic and investment
relations with Austria and other leading partner countries. He
noted that Bulgaria has gained an advantage as a result of the
unstable situation in neighbouring Greece, which has caused
investments to be rechannelled to Bulgaria.

In order to boost investor interest in the Bulgarian economy, it
 is necessary to implement major reforms, Loukarski said. First
among them is the reform of the judicial system. The second most
 important reform has to do with reducing the administrative
burden on businesses and developing electronic government, he
said. He expressed hope that already in 2015 Bulgaria will make
serious progress in the field of electronic government, using
expertise from Austria, which is a leader in the EU in this
regard.

The Austrian Business Circle inquired about the opportunities
arising from Operational Programme "Innovation and
Competitiveness," which is one of seven EU-supported Operational
 Programmes in Bulgaria in the period 2014-2020. They also
raised questions about the introduction of a dual education
system in Bulgaria to combine education and apprenticeship. The
Austrian business officials complained of a lack of skilled
labour in this country, particularly in such sectors as trade
and metalworking.

Loukarski responded by saying that similar concerns have also
been repeatedly expressed by Bulgarian employers. He believes it
 is necessary to adopt new legislation to provide for the
introduction of the dual education system, and this will
hopefully happen by the year's end.

The Austrian Business Circle said that a new Austrian investment
 of 120 million euro will be made in the Bulgarian economy this
year.