site.btaTurkiye Is Important, Reliable Economic Partner of Bulgaria, Says Economy Deputy Minister

Turkiye is one of Bulgaria's main reliable economic partners, with whom this country continues to build on the successful trade and economic relations, said Economy Deputy Minister Nikolay Pavlov during the Bulgarian-Turkish Business Forum in Shumen on Thursday.

"Proof of the high economic activity between business representatives from both countries is the statistical data, according to which we can see EUR 7.7 billion of bilateral exchange (of goods in 2024 - ed. note), which is an increase of 15% compared to 2023," he emphasized, adding that the trend is upward, with expectations and ambitions to reach EUR 10 billion of goods exchange soon.

Pavlov commented that the assessment of this growth potential is shared and pointed out that the current forum is another step that enables companies from both countries to build important new partnerships, to form new impressions and ideas through which this potential can be developed. "In addition to the excellent trade relations we have, our country is an attractive investment destination for Turkish business and many Turkish companies share their positive experience from their investments in Bulgaria. In some regions, they are the largest employers," he noted.

"We have significant Turkish investments in a very wide range of sectors of the economy such as the construction of transport and energy infrastructure, the construction of residential and office buildings, the production of parts and details for the automotive, food, chemical, textile industries and many others," Pavlov said.

The minister stressed that the Bulgarian and Turkish business communities have been going through serious challenges related to the pandemic, military conflicts, inflation, high electricity prices. "Nevertheless, it is an indisputable fact, and we can congratulate ourselves on it, that our relations are developing positively and intensively. I assure you that Bulgaria is an excellent destination for investments. Turkish business can take advantage of the opportunities for direct investments in the country's industrial parks, the one in Shumen has already been mentioned, which provide ready-made terrain for investment projects," Pavlov pointed out.

He noted that the government's policy is aimed at constantly improving the business environment by reducing the administrative and financial burden on companies. "We will stimulate investments in high-tech production, in the creation of new products and services with increasingly higher added value, as well as in the construction of a competitive resource-efficient and low-carbon industry," he said, adding that he believes that Turkish business should take advantage of the opportunities and policies at the local level.

"At the same time, our priority for membership in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development remains a leading one for our country, and the very process of joining this organization helps us constantly improve our regulatory environment and favours the development of business here," Pavlov emphasized. "I hope that today's event, in addition to outlining the main challenges facing the economies of both countries, will also outline the opportunities for overcoming them precisely through mutual cooperation between state institutions and non-governmental organizations, all for the economic prosperity of our societies," he concluded.