Today brings an intense political and institutional agenda in Bulgaria. The National Assembly, parliamentary committees and the Council of Ministers are meeting to consider fundamental changes in the legislation, to move forward the election for a new manager of the billion-dollar healthcare budget and to financially secure the upcoming presidential vote. Here are the main highlights on the government's agenda:
Quotas for women in company management
The National Assembly enters the plenary hall to consider important changes to the Law on Equality between Men and Women. The submitted bill envisages the introduction of strict requirements according to which the underrepresented gender must occupy not less than 33% of all director positions in public companies (including members of management and supervisory boards with and without executive functions).
The first official reporting under the new rules must begin in 2027 for the financial year 2026, and in case of non-compliance, companies will be subject to sanctions and will be required to justify in writing the lack of balanced representation. The text of the bill is available on the official portal of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria (parliament.bg).
Hearing of two candidates for head of the NHIF
The Parliamentary Committee on Health will meet at 14:30 for an official hearing of the candidates for governor and deputy governor of the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). Two nominees will compete for the position of governor:
- Dr. Vladimir Daskalov – surgeon and staff with extensive experience in the management of public hospitals, proposed by “Progressive Bulgaria“;
- Stanimir Mihailov – former manager of the Health Fund with experience in the banking sector, nominated by “We continue the change“.
There is only one candidacy for the position of deputy manager - that of mechanical engineer Zdravko Shushkov. The final choice of the new leadership will be voted on by the deputies in the plenary hall at a later stage. Details of the procedural rules and nominations were announced by the Bulgarian National Radio (bnrnews.bg) and the medical portal LexMedica News (lexmedicanews.com).
Millions for the presidential elections in October
The Council of Ministers is holding its regular meeting at 10:00, at which a key point is approval of the cost plan for the preparation and conduct of the presidential and vice-presidential elections.
The first round of voting for the head of state will be held on October 25, 2026, and if a runoff is necessary, citizens will vote again one week later. At the proposal of the Minister of Finance, the cabinet will also vote on other important items, including agreements in the field of defense (for F-16 fighters) and estimates under the European Union. The official agenda is published on the portal of the Council of Ministers (gov.bg/special/bg/prestsentar/predstoyashti-sabitia) and the Bulgarian Industrial Chamber (bia-bg.com).