site.btaEconomic and Social Council Head Comments on Social Enterprises, Liberalization of Energy Market

Zornitsa Rusinova, President of the Economic and Social Council of the Republic of Bulgaria, said in a BTA interview that green and digital transformation should be a focus in changes concerning social enterprises. Rusinova's comment was related to the Council's statement on "Accelerating the development of the social economy in Bulgaria in response to modern challenges". 

The Economic and Social Council President noted that it is possible to seek to expand the definition of a social enterprise, to consider better incentives, to have a better commitment to the various regulations that guarantee the rights of people with disabilities. She also mentioned the need for better and more targeted access to financing for social enterprises.

Another topic that the Economic and Social Council focused on on 2024 was the liberalization of the energy market for domestic consumers. The Council considers that it is necessary to take compensatory measures early on so that consumers are not faced with the risk of price increases. Consideration should be given to the development of model contracts by the Ministry of Energy for consumers, as well as developing the regulatory framework so that these contracts contain protective clauses for consumer rights, Rusinova said, adding that good regulations must also be ensured regarding the determining of tariffs. "We have studied the experience in other EU member states, and in some of them there are so-called social tariffs. Our insistence happens early enough to inform people and to provide enough time to the social partners to look at the whole legal framework and to guarantee the rights of citizens. The goal is not to end up in a situation where household consumers are already on the free market and are facing difficulties," she pointed out.

With regard to the directive on adequate minimum wages, Rusinova expressed her expectation that the document will be adopted by the Bulgarian state in time.