site.btaBTA's Europe on Balkans Cohesion Skills Conference Held in Stara Zagora

Representatives of various sectors who have worked on projects related to the EU's Cohesion Policy participated in a local conference at the National Press Club of the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) in Stara Zagora on Wednesday. The event was part of BTA's Europe on Balkans: Cohesion Skills project.

Stara Zagora is an example that Bulgaria has traditions in the development of its regions, which did not begin with its accession to the European Union, but has continued with EU support, BTA Director General Kiril Valchev said at the opening of the local conference. He cited as examples of such investment the Stara Zagora State Opera and Trakia University. He noted that the new opera house, built after a fire, opened in 2010, becoming the largest opera house in the Balkans and the first in Bulgaria designed specifically for the art of opera. Valchev also said Stara Zagora has given the world artists such as Hristina Morfova, Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Stefka Mineva and Vesselina Katsarova, to mention just a few. Some of the Stara Zagora Opera productions are staged in the restored Roman Forum, which stands right next to the opera building, Valchev said. This serves as a reminder of the much more ancient history of millennia-long urban development in this area. 

"Europe is not in the Balkans, but the Balkans are in Europe, as it has been scientifically proven that European civilization actually began here," said Stara Zagora Regional Governor Metodi Markov. He emphasized that Stara Zagora is an 8,000-year-old city and that much of what is happening in Europe today originated here. "I would like to highlight one point in today's discussion, and I will quote the Minister of Education, who recently stated that perhaps we need to reconsider what and how we should approach education in the coming years," Markov said, adding that instead of encouraging students to think critically and logically, they are often only memorizing information that later proves irrelevant to society.

The operation of the mining complexes is not just a problem for Stara Zagora, nor is it merely about energy security; it is closely linked to Bulgaria's national security, said MEP Andrey Novakov. Stara Zagora has become a central hub for the implementation of significant European policies in Bulgaria over the past few years, particularly due to the Mini Maritsa Iztok Complex, he underscored. "I am confident that those familiar with the operation of the complex understand that, in turbulent times, if necessary, the thermal power plants can provide nearly complete power supply to critical infrastructure and consumers in Bulgaria, without external assistance," he said. He noted that most Bulgarian MEPs share his opinion and emphasized that it is time to recognize that this is not a resource Bulgaria can afford to abandon lightly.

In Stara Zagora Region, a total of 116 projects worth 26.5 BGN million for establishing STEM classrooms are being implemented, Regional Information Centre Manager Radka Tileva told the local conference. She noted that these projects are financed under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan and recalled the European initiatives for improving education, saying that innovations in education play a key role in adapting curricula to the needs of the modern labour market and in developing the region's intellectual potential. Tileva said that nine procedures have been announced and completed under the Education Programme in the 2021-2027 programming period, with Trakia University having a contract for the implementation of a project titled "Support for the Development of Project Doctoral Studies", with a grant of over BGN 2.1 million.

BTA's Europe on Balkans: Cohesion Skills project 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.