site.btaPresident and EU Commissioner Discuss Innovation as Competitiveness Driver

Receiving European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation Ekaterina Zaharieva in Sofia during her first official visit to an EU member state, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev congratulated her on her election to this important position and pointed out that her portfolio is of central significance for the EU. "Innovation, research and technology are at the heart of the policy of enhancing the competitiveness of the European economy," Radev said, as quoted by his press secretariat on Friday.

He noted that Europe lags seriously behind the global leaders in the field of innovation in recent years and needs to catch up. The European space of science and innovation is fragmented, which is a great challenge, the President said, adding that it should be consolidated without killing internal competition.

Radev and Zaharieva discussed the priorities of the Bulgarian EU Commissioner and looked at the challenges facing Europe in this domain. They laid particular emphasis on startup businesses and the need for greater flexibility of relevant programmes and regulations, the provision of incentives to the private sector to invest in innovation and science, and the effort to retain and attract talented scientists to the EU.

The two officials shared the view that the relationship between education and business should be strengthened to speed up the application of innovations. They see a need to upgrade and expand scientific and technical infrastructure related to research work and practical tests. The President said the resilience and the competitiveness of the economy and the development of quality education are prerequisites for promoting innovation in Bulgaria.

The role of the EU Horizon Europe programme as an important instrument for the development of science was highlighted during the meeting. Radev and Zaharieva discussed the possibility of building an international centre for sustainable technologies in Bulgaria using CERN technology, which can create new opportunities for research in various branches of science.