Bulgaria Has Not Absorbed a Single Euro of the €600 Million Just Transition Fund, Caretaker Regional Development Minister Said

Bulgaria has not absorbed a single euro from the €600 million Just Transition Fund intended for regional support, caretaker Regional Development Minister Angelina Boneva said in Brussels, where she attended a conference on assistance for countries bordering Ukraine and Belarus.

According to Boneva, the European Commission has pledged support to help Bulgaria absorb the funds. She also promised that European financing would be available even if a new state budget is not adopted.

Boneva said a lack of communication was among the main reasons for the dismissal of Yordan Valchev, chair of the board of the Road Infrastructure Agency.

“There was a lack of communication with me as Minister for Regional Development and Public Works, and clearly a lack of communication with citizens regarding the upcoming holidays. I took over traffic organisation manually; today another deputy minister has also taken it on directly. The aim is for Bulgarians and Greeks to be able to travel normally during these shared holiday periods. Children are on school holidays — this is not the time for roadworks that have not been approved by me. This should have been communicated to me. That is the main reason this happened,” Boneva said.