site.btaNational Audit Office and European Court of Auditors Tackle Public Finance Challenges and Strengthen Collaboration

The main challenges in managing public finances and ways the Bulgarian National Audit Office (BNAO) and the European Court of Auditors (ECA) can collaborate more effectively were discussed by President of BNAO Dimitar Glavchev and Bulgaria's representative to ECA, Iliana Ivanova, during her visit, BNAO said here on Thursday.

BNAO seeks to deliver trustworthy insights into the management of European funds through its audits, concentrating on the most publicly important aspects of fund management, Glavchev said. He highlighted two audits planned in this year’s audit programme: Implementation of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) from January 1, 2021, to August 3, 2026, and Ensuring Access to Drinking Water for the Population During Drought Conditions from January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2025. These audits will assess the contribution of EU funds to achieving national water supply goals in areas with water supply issues.

Glavchev and Ivanova discussed opportunities to improve public fund oversight and shared best practices between audit institutions. During their conversation, Ivanova also commented on the main findings of the ECA’s Annual Report on the implementation of the European Union budget for 2023.

The main challenge for Bulgaria is the delay in utilizing European funds, exacerbated by political instability, Ivanova said in January when presenting the ECA’s 2023 Annual Report to the BNAO leadership. While no quantitative errors were found in Bulgaria’s management of European funds in the Agriculture and Natural Resources sector, errors were identified in Cohesion Policy, particularly in utilizing funds under the Recovery and Resilience Plan, she noted at the time.