site.btaAllocated Funds under Bulgarian Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid Programme Increase Several Times

The allocated funds under the Bulgarian Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid programme have been increased several times, said Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mariya Gabriel on Friday in response to a question from BSP for Bulgaria MP Ivan Chenchev during Question Time in Parliament.

The programme to support Bulgarian community organizations in Albania, Serbia, Kosovo, Ukraine, Moldova and North Macedonia citizens who identify as Bulgarian was initiated in 2020 precisely with the aim of supporting Bulgarians and Bulgarian communities and organizations abroad, Gabriel said. She specified that for the four years in which projects were implemented, a programme’s implementation received a positive evaluation. The allocated funds have been increased several times, she added, and said that the budget for 2024 is BGN 2.1 million .

Gabriel pointed out that as the financial resources increase, so does the number of projects and funded companies. In 2022, 34 projects were financed in the four countries of the Western Balkans, In 2023, out of the 46 project proposals submitted to the Bulgarian diplomatic and consular missions, 40 were approved for financing, she added.

The Deputy Prime Minister said that the procedure for projects for 2024 is about to be initiated. Gabriel pointed out that the current programme is time-limited and expires this year. She stressed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has started a process of review, analysis and evaluation of the implementation of the programme so far, and her decision is to continue this programme.