There is a significant positive statistical connection between GDP per capita and the satisfaction rate. However, Bulgaria, being a middle income economy, is one of the saddest places on Earth. We try to identify possible reasons for this phenomenon and we put forward some policy implications. The evolution of fertility rates, income per capita and income distribution during the democratic era help to understand the Bulgarian sadness. ; En general la satisfacción de los individuos de una sociedad es mayor cuanto mayor sea el ingreso per cápita. No obstante, Bulgaria, siendo un país de ingresos medios, es uno de los lugares más tristes del planeta. En este artículo tratamos de identificar las causas de este fenómeno y aventuramos algunas implicaciones de política. La evolución de la tasa de fertilidad, el ingreso per cápita y la distribución del ingreso a partir de la era democrática ayudan a entender el fenómeno de la tristeza búlgara.
One of the more orthodox Communist countries in the Warsaw Pact, Bulgaria has slowly but surely made its way out of Socialist authoritarianism and is developing democracy and a market economy. Despite a sizable non-Bulgarian ethnic minority (especial Turks), the country has avoided the ethnic tensions that led to war in Russia (Chechnya) or the former Yugoslavia. The possibility of joining NATO and the European Union promises to bring Bulgaria closer to the West than ever in its history. Bulgaria's party politics were among the more stable in Eastern Europe until the arrival of a new mass movement, but Bulgaria is not on the verge of civil chaos.
" INFORMATION REPORT ", Prepared on behalf of EUROPEAN NETWORK ON THE LAW OF WATER AND NATURE 20 December 31, 2006 was the final date for Bulgaria to make its inventory and the list of protected areas in the European Commission. In March 2007, the Council of Ministers has submitted to the Commission documentation for Natura 2000 protected areas. At that time, in addition to the opinions of associations, 18.2 % of the country had been proposed for the Natura 2000 network. Accordingly, Européan Topic Centre on Biological Diversity held inadequate proposal.Following this observation, the Council of Ministers approved in 2007, 33.8 % of the national territory as Natura 2000 areas.Finally, in May 2011 the national network of protected areas has expanded to reach 34.34 % of Bulgaria, which makes Bulgaria the state-member with the highest percentage of Natura 2000 areas, in proportion to its national territory. Bulgaria is a country whose nature, fauna and flora are particularly varied, its conservation is a national and European issue.
The 1991 Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria proclaimed the principle of people's sovereignty in Article 1(2): "the whole power of the state stems from the people. It is exercised by the people directly, and through the bodies envisaged by the Constitution". However, the constitutional practice developed in the country, and the laws adopted since 1991, have rendered the direct forms of democracy largely inoperative, especially at the national level. The forms of direct democracy have been diminished to an instrument of party politics, an instrument, which, for the last ten years, has fallen into disuse. Direct democracy cannot be, even theoretically, an effective check to representative democracy in Bulgaria, because the adopted legislation on national referenda and plebiscites allows for the representative bodies of state power to determine both the subject-matter and the timing of any national popular vote: in fact, they have an effective veto on every proposal for referendum. In what follows I will discuss the legal arrangements envisaged by these documents as well as the practices in the sphere of direct democracy developed in Bulgaria since 1989.
Kras v Bolgariji obsega 26 170 km2 oziroma 22,7 % celotnega ozemlja. Kraški vodni viri so ocenjeni na 2,3 milijarde m3 , kar predstavlja 11,6 % vseh vodnih virov v državi. Zanimanje za bolgarski kras se je povečalo v zadnjih letih zaradi reševanja vsakdanjih vprašanj. Za ta kras je značilna velika raznolikost zaradi prepletanja različnih dejavnikov (geoloških, tektonskih, geomorfoloških, hidroloških in hidrogeoloških, klimatskih, itd.) in skladno z geodinamičnim razvojem tega dela Evrope. Pričujoče delo predstavlja novo delitev krasa v Bolgariji. Avtorica loči sledeče tipe: ravninski kras (Donavska nižina), morski kras, v ravninskega spremenjeni morski kras in ravninsko-morski kras (Črnomorska podvodna in kopna ravnina); planotasti kras (Predbalkan) in gorski kras. Posebej obravnava kraška močvirja in kraške pojave, ki so jih povzročili potresi v geološki preteklosti. Kot primer so predstavljeni tudi modeli različnih tipov krasa, njihov nastanek, dinamika, vpliv kamninske strukture, medsebojni odnosi, itd.The karst in Bulgaria occupies an area of 26 170 km2 or 22.7 % of the territory of the country. The karst water resources are estimated to be 2.3 billion m3 or 11.6 % of the total water resources of the country. The interest in karst in Bulgaria has become higher during the last years because there are a number of practical problems that have to be solved. Karst in Bulgaria is characterized by great diversity due to the complex combination of factors (geological, tectonic, geomorphologic, hydrological and hydrogeological, climatic, etc.) and to the geodynamic development of this part of Europe. This work presents a new zoning of karst in Bulgaria. The following types have been distinguished: plain karst (the Danubian Plain); marine and transformed marine karst into plain and plain-marine karst (Black Sea subaqual and subareal plain); plateau-like karst (the Fore Balkan) and mountainous karst. The karst wetlands and karst phenomena provoked by paleoearthquakes are separately outlined and sample models for the different karst types, genesis, dynamics, lithostructural control, relations, etc. are presented.
This Country Report offers a detailed assessment of religious diversity and violent religious radicalisation in the above-named state. It is part of a series covering 23 countries (listed below) on four continents. More basic information about religious affiliation and state-religion relations in these states is available in our Country Profiles series. This report was produced by GREASE, an EU-funded research project investigating religious diversity, secularism and religiously inspired radicalisation. ; This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement number 770640.
This Country Profile provides a brief overview of religious diversity and its governance in the above-named state. It is one of 23 such profiles produced by GREASE, an EU-funded research project investigating religious diversity, state-religion relations and religiously inspired radicalisation on four continents. More detailed assessments are available in our multi-part Country Reports and Country Cases. ; This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement number 770640.
Polis. - ISSN 0872-8208. - S. 2, n. 4 (Julho-Dezembro 2021). - p. 251-254. ; On the 21st of November 2021, the Bulgarian electorate was again called to the polls it what may be defined as a moment of consolidation of the winds of change blowing over the Bulgarian electoral scene. With the victory of the new party "We Continue the Change" (Продължаваме промяната - Prodalzhavame promyanata) 4 in the legislative elections – the third in a row – scheduled for the same day as the presidential elections, with the GERB (ГЕРБ) party being defeated, president Rumen Radev (Румен Радев) which ran as an independent although supported by "We Continue the Change" was reelected, being able to ensure, on the presidential side of power, the stability won by this party. In the second round of the elections, the "new opposition" GERB and the Union of Democratic Forces (Съюз на демократичните сили - Sayuz na demokratichnite sili) supported the independent candidate Anastas Gerdjikov (Анастас Герджиков), a professor at the University of Sofia. This brief analysis of the presidential electoral system and the following election results is relevant as Radev's victory granted the president a second and last presidential mandate, while a hypothetic victory of Gerdjikov would potentially moderate the reformist impulses of the new government.
BACKGROUND—Although the rate of smoking-related deaths in Bulgaria is still relatively low, in international terms, it has been rising rapidly. This is likely to become worse in the future as Bulgaria faces growing pressure from transnational tobacco companies. There is, however, little information on patterns of smoking, which is necessary for development of effective policies to tackle tobacco consumption. OBJECTIVE—To describe the pattern of smoking in Bulgaria and its relationship with sociodemographic factors. DESIGN—Multivariate analysis of data on patterns of tobacco consumption from a multi-stage nationwide survey of 1550 adults. SETTING—Bulgaria, in 1997. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE—Prevalence of current cigarette smoking. RESULTS—38.4% of men and 16.7% of women smoke. Smoking rates are strongly associated with age, with 58% of men and 30% of women aged 30-39 smoking whereas only 5% of men aged 70 years and older and almost no women of this age smoke. Smoking is more common in cities, among those who are widowed or divorced, or who do not own their home. There is no clear association with household income or, for men, with education, although there is a suggestion that smoking may be more common among more highly educated women. CONCLUSIONS—The observed pattern of smoking indicates the need for a robust policy to tackle smoking in Bulgaria, especially among the young in large cities, informed by a better understanding of why smoking rates vary among different groups. Keywords: smoking prevalence; Bulgaria
Doing business 2020 is the 17th in a series of annual studies investigating the regulations that enhance business activity and those that constrain it. Doing business presents quantitative indicators on business regulations and the protection of property rights that can be compared across 190 economies - from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe - and over time. Regulations affecting 12 areas of the life of a business are covered: starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting minority investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts, resolving insolvency, employing workers, and contracting with the government. The employing workers and contracting with the government indicator sets are not included in this year's ranking on the ease of doing business. Data in doing business 2020 are current as of May 1, 2019. The indicators are used to analyze economic outcomes and identify what reforms of business regulation have worked, where, and why. This economy profile presents indicators for Bulgaria; for 2020, Bulgaria ranks 61.
Bulgaria's housing sector provides a window into the broader issues of the country's social, and economic transformation. This process has been difficult, and, as was the case in many transition countries, one of the main problem areas has been the housing sector. While the government has played an active role in reforming the housing sector since 2004, and continued with initiatives to improve energy efficiency in residential buildings, new sectoral problems have emerged. Vacancy rates are extremely high, affordability concerns have intensified, and household mobility is one of the lowest among transition countries. As a result, the government is about to embark on a housing strategy, one that seeks to address the emerging issues with a particular emphasis on how this sector's functioning interacts with and affects the broader economy. This rapid assessment of Bulgaria's housing sector attempts to inform the country's forthcoming strategy. It brings together information on how the sector has performed, and relies upon the international experience, and particularly the experience of other transition economies, to set the stage for the prospective Strategy's deeper probe. Bulgaria followed a Soviet style planning approach that created one of the world's most over industrialized economies. In following this approach, it expanded many cities to service what are now bankrupt heavy industries. The result is that today the employment prospects in many locations remain dim, particularly where state-owned factories of the old regime have closed. This has resulted in massive population shifts, with some villages and towns facing complete abandonment. The country has a large ageing population, and is also experiencing one of the world's sharpest reductions in population. Population has declined by almost 20 percent since 1989, and this trend is likely to intensify over the next two decades.
The Mapping Digital Media project examines the global opportunities and risks created by the transition from traditional to digital media. Covering 60 countries, the project examines how these changes affect the core democratic service that any media system should provide: news about political, economic, and social affairs.After a significant delay, the transition to digital terrestrial broadcasting in Bulgaria is scheduled to be finished in 2013. While cable television appears to have peaked since 2007, satellite television continues to increase its penetration, more often through bundled services. On the other hand, Internet Protocol television (IPTV) is also growing, albeit from a low base. Although Bulgarians enjoy some of the fastest internet connections in the world, overall broadband penetration is low.However, except for the ubiquitous popularity of torrent trackers, there is a lack of e-government services and on-demand audiovisual content. Press and radio are declining in revenue, and the press in particular has welcomed investors with hidden sources of financing that use newspapers for their own business interests. Shedding more light on media ownership, prohibiting concentration, and securing sustainable business models for quality news outlets remain key challenges.
To understand the fiscal position of a country, contingent liabilities and other sources of fiscal risk need to be considered. The authors develop a framework to assess and manage fiscal risk in Bulgaria. Bulgaria's Currency Board Arrangement has effectively imposed fiscal discipline, but leaves only limited room to accommodate potential fiscal shocks. Through risks embedded in the portfolio of government contingent and direct liabilities, significant fiscal pressures could arise in the future. Major sources of risk include environmental liabilities and investment requirements, collection capacities of the social protection institutions, and further engagement in off-budget programs, such as government guarantees. To limit the Government's exposure to risks, yet accommodate investment needs crucial to growth and development, Bulgaria must find an optimal strategy for liability management, fiscal reserves, and risk mitigation. Priorities for dealing with existing risks and limiting further accumulation of risks include: 1) Mitigating currency and interest rate risks in the government liability structure. 2) Implementing proposed institutional and finance reform of the country's pension and health care systems. 3) Building adequate contingency reserves. 4) Introducing risk-sharing arrangements. 5) Prioritizing and placing strict limits on the amounts of new guaranteed obligations. 6) Developing government capacity to analyze and manage risks. 7) Fully integrating fiscal risk management with other policy considerations in fiscal management, as part of an integrated asset and liability management strategy.
Assessing access to healthcare in a given country remains a challenging endeavor. Despite the frequent use of access as a dimension of the health system performance assessment frameworks, there is no agreed-upon set of indicators to evaluate it. This study aims to assess the access to healthcare in Bulgaria. The assessment is based on a set of the most commonly used indicators with publicly available data. Results show that timeliness and physical availability are not substantial barriers for obtaining health services in Bulgaria, as the values for most of the considered indicators are better than the EU average. The most significant barrier to access to healthcare in Bulgaria is the financial affordability. Data shows insufficient financial protection alongside other factors resulting in higher than the EU average level of unmet needs due to financial reasons. Policy measures focused on decreasing the share of private health expenditures ought to be exerted to reduce inequalities in access to healthcare services.
