site.btaUPDATED Concluding Conference of Europe in Bulgaria: Common Future Project to Take Place in BTA’s Press Club in Veliko Tarnovo

The concluding conference of Europe in Bulgaria: Common Future Project, which BTA implements with the support of the European Commission, will take place at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday in BTA’s national press club in the north-central town of Veliko Tarnovo. The forum will be opened by BTA’s Director General Kiril Valchev.

The event’s programme includes a thematic panel discussion covering the following topics: “Europe closer to citizens by promoting sustainable and integrated development of regions”, “Territorial cooperation and a safer and more secure Europe”, “A more social and inclusive Europe”, “An ecological and low-carbon transition to a zero-carbon economy”, “A more connected Europe”, “A more competitive and smarter Europe”.

Among the participants will be local and executive officials, managing authorities of various programmes, and officials from higher education institutions. They will share good practices from different municipalities and regions.

The main objective of the Europe in Bulgaria: A Common Future Project, which officially ends on Tuesday, was to raise awareness of cohesion policy, the political priorities of the European Union, and the 2021-2027 programming period opportunities, as well as to present results at the local level and to outline the challenges and ways to overcome them.

The series of conferences was launched on December 1, 2022, in BTA’s MaxiM Hall in Sofia. The opening conference was followed by forums in all Bulgarian regional cities, as well as in some larger municipalities such as Kazanlak, Samokov, and Svishtov. The events were attended by officials of the regional administrations, municipalities, executive authorities, Europe Direct Regional Information Centres, experts, and NGO and business representatives. The discussions revolved around the following questions: how cohesion policy has changed the face of municipalities, what problems have arisen in the course of the implementation of the project, and what better solutions can be reached based on the experience gained.

A summary of the activities and perspectives set out in future programmes and the National Recovery and Resilience Plan will be part of the discussions at the concluding conference of the project.