site.btaBTA's Europe on Balkans: Cohesion Skills Conference Held in Petrich

The Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) on Thursday held a local conference in the southwestern town of Petrich as part of the Europe on Balkans: Cohesion Skills project with the support of the European Commission.

Cohesion within the European Union is achieved through dialogue that ensures no one is left behind, BTA Director General Kiril Valchev said at the the opening of the conference. It was exactly one year ago on this day that the BTA National Press Club in Petrich was inaugurated, marking a step towards integrating the town into the pan-European conversation, Valchev noted. “Towns like Petrich contribute to the EU even though they are not administrative centres,” he added.

For the last year and a half, the Regional Administration of Blagoevgrad has been a beneficiary of an important national infrastructure project that it is implementing, namely the construction of a new border control checkpoint between Bulgaria and the Republic of North Macedonia, said Blagoevgrad Regional Governor Georgi Dinev. He reported that the project will improve the connectivity between the peoples of the region and will largely contribute to their building closer ties. He expressed hope that such projects would help politicians in both countries to realize that they can work and live together.

The Regional Information Centre in Blagoevgrad has conducted an information campaign in all 14 municipalities in the region, its manager Biser Mladenov said. "Instead of explaining how much money we received, because the figures are available online, we held a meeting where we made young people pay attention to the fact that the school they study in, the street they walk on, are made with EU funds," Mladenov said, adding that they met with over 500 students from the entire region.

Successfully implemented projects and the opportunities provided by the European Union were presented by Petrich Mayor Dimitar Bruchkov. He said that what has been accomplished so far is a foundation that provides more opportunities, and added: "When we take advantage of the opportunities provided by all these European Structural and Investment Funds in the development of settlements, as well as the regional centre, we create the base which can be built on."

Knowledge is one of the answers to the question on how to invest funds effectively, said Yordanka Chobanova, head of the European Commission's Representation in Bulgaria. Chobanova said that the purpose of the conference is to show the successes in Petrich since Bulgaria joined the European Union in 2007. "We can say that today Petrich is a different town, modern, renewed," she pointed out. "Over the last 10 years, more than BGN 100 million has been invested in the municipality in nearly 500 projects aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises, energy efficiency, agriculture, urban environment, educational, tourist and cultural infrastructure," she emphasized.

The increase in attendance and popularity of the archeological site Heraclea Sintica shows an added value for the advertising of the state, which is reflected in the economy of the region and generally changes the map of cultural tourism in Bulgaria, noted Katya Stoyanova, Head of the Restoration, Conservation and Socialization project of Heraclea Sintica.

"One of the big goals of this kind of meeting is to make sure that Bulgaria is Europe and you don't need to think about a future outside our country, somewhere in Western Europe," BTA Director General Valchev addressed students from the Vocational High School of Economics and Tourism in Petrich at the end of the local conference.

Through this initiative, BTA aims to raise public awareness and foster open dialogue about cohesion policy, local achievements, and the implementation of the EU's policy priorities. Between November 2024 and 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.