From January to December 2024, Kardzhali Municipality concluded 20 new contracts for grant procedures worth nearly BGN 60 million, Nadezhda Tsvetkova, head of the Strategic Planning and Project Management Department at the Municipality, said here Thursday. She was among the participants at a local conference within BTA's Europe on Balkans: Cohesion Skills project.
She stated that the Municipality is implementing 16 investments worth nearly BGN 35 million under various procedures of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. Five financing contracts aim to introduce energy efficiency measures in two administrative buildings, two buildings of cultural institutions, and a sports hall. Energy efficiency measures will be introduced in eight multi-family residential buildings as well.
It is also planned to modernize the building stock of the Yan Bibiyan Kindergarten and the home for the elderly in the town, as well as to build a Youth Centre.
European funding allows municipalities to diversify the services they provide to vulnerable groups and support their reintegration into the community, Tsvetkova stressed. She said that two contracts worth a total of BGN 24.2 million are being implemented under Operational Programme Environment (2021-2027). One of the projects will allow Kardzhali Municipality to improve the quality of ambient air by providing households and property owners who use solid fuel appliances to replace them free of charge with new environmentally friendly ones.
Under Operational Programme Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture (2021-2027), Kardzhali Municipality is implementing a project that has led to the establishment of a local Fishery Initiative Group, covering the municipalities of Kardzhali, Ardino, Momchilgrad, and Chernoochene.
Tsvetkova added that the functioning of the Kardzhali Regional Information Centre is guaranteed until 2029 under Operational Programme Technical Assistance (2021-2027), with a contract worth BGN 825,000.
Through the Europe on Balkans: Cohesion Skills project, BTA aims to raise public awareness and foster open dialogue about cohesion policy, local achievements, and the implementation of the EU's policy priorities. The project kicked off with a conference in Veliki Preslav in November 2024. Until September 2025, BTA will host discussions at its press clubs in the following cities: Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Varna, Veliko Tarnovo, Vidin, Vratsa, Gabrovo, Dobrich, Kazanlak, Kardzhali, Kyustendil, Lovech, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pernik, Pleven, Razgrad, Ruse, Samokov, Svishtov, Sliven, Smolyan, Sofia, Stara Zagora, Troyan, Targovishte, Haskovo, Shumen, and Yambol. Cross-border conferences will be held in Belgrade, Bosilegrad, Bucharest, Edirne, Skopje, and Thessaloniki. The project builds on the Europe in the Balkans: A Common Future and Europe in Bulgaria: A Common Future projects, implemented by BTA in 2023 and 2024, respectively.
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