127 million euros of European funding for small and medium-sized enterprises in the districts of Stara Zagora, Pernik and Kyustendil remain blocked for more than six months. Vesselina Gospodinova from the Bulgarian Association of Consultants on European Programs warned about this on NOVA NEWS.
The funds are under the Just Transition Fund and are intended for the economic transformation of coal regions. The goal is for businesses to invest in new activities and create alternative employment for people who may be affected by the gradual shutdown of coal energy in the coming years.
501 projects have been approved under the program, which are expected to create over 2,000 new jobs. However, contracts with the candidates have not yet been signed, and the procedures that have already been started have been frozen due to an internal audit at the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works.
The Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works indicates that the inspection began after signals from candidates under the procedure. During the inspection, weaknesses were identified, including the presence of subjective evaluation criteria and their incorrect application. According to the ministry, this creates a risk of projects of lower quality being approved and financed.
Gospodinova explained that according to the association, the problem is not in the procedure itself, but in the evaluation of the projects. According to her, there are doubts that some of the candidates did not receive their points objectively, and this may have rearranged the ranking and left good projects without funding.
“When there are over 30 signals, it is difficult to speak only of a technical error“, she said.
The association insists that the audit be completed as soon as possible and that the MRDPW announce a clear decision - whether the conclusion of contracts under the current procedure will continue, or it will be announced again with clearer and more objective criteria.
Gospodinova warned that time is key, because delay could put the absorption of funds at risk. According to her, if a new procedure is to be launched, it should be announced by September or October at the latest, so as not to miss the deadlines.
She also criticized the possibility of redirecting the funds to financial instruments, that is, to loans for businesses on favorable terms. According to her, this is not a suitable option, because the main goal is to create jobs.
“No employer will take out a loan to create new jobs“, commented Gospodinova.