BY
MILENA MINKOVA, S.J.D
BULGARIA
 

PROJECT’S  AREA: BUILDING INSTITUTIONS

PROJECT’S TITLE: DEFINING THE NEW ROLE OF THE REGIONS IN OVERSEEING AND COORDINATING REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN BULGARIA

PROJECT’S REFERENCE NUMBER: 2282-BUI-MIN-BG
 

PROJECT’S TIMETABLE

January, 2003- February, 2003

The timetable of this project is prepared on the basis of the methodology used.

- To conduct an analysis of the existing political, economic and legal framework related to regions and regional governor and its role in regional development matters and the current distribution of roles and responsibilities among levels of government in regional development, based on a review of the existing literature, legislation, and main social and economic indicators;
- To prepare a map for conducting the quantitative analysis to be applied to each level of government. This combines analysis with case studies from the central level of government / Council of Ministers, Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works and the Ministry of Finance/,  4 regional centers /Smolian, Vidin, Gabrovo and Stara Zagora/, two small towns with particular success in regional development /Sevlievo and  Trojan/ and two small towns within a rural area with heavy problems in economic development /Smolian and Haskovo/. The regional centers are selected as to present different tendencies: Vidin and Smolian are centers of planning Euro-regions/ Bulgarian-Romanian and Bulgarian-Greek borders/, Gabrovo and Stara Zagora have been centers of pilot projects for advancing regional development. The case studies of the local level of government are selected according to the agenda to include real success stories /Sevlievo/, as well as problematic areas /Smolian and Haskovo/ in an effort to envisage different types of problems, different solutions and to draw common conclusions on this basis. The purpose of the quantitative analysis is to illustrate how different levels of government participate in regional development “on paper”- in terms of national legislation, various local regulations, local financial and statistical data, absorbtion of EU funds and their management, public-private partnerships, etc..
- To prepare a questionnaire for the interviews to be conducted at each level of public administration, including central, regional and local bodies of government and the 6 planning regions as a part of the qualitative analysis
 

March, 2003-May, 2003

- To conduct the quantitative analysis based on different primary and secondary sources;
- To conduct the qualitative analysis based on interviews held in all pilot areas selected. The qualitative analysis is based on interviews conducted at each level of public administration to provide an understanding of the empirical reality of central, regional and local governments participating in regional development in Bulgaria. Using this methodology, information will be obtained on the implementation of central, regional and local government policies, related to formulating, planning, coordinating and overseeing regional development. Interviews will be conducted with a wide range of main actors in the public sector, representatives of the business sector, the existing business incubators as development agencies, the  NGOs, etc. Representatives of the Delegation of the European Commission in Bulgaria, international financial institutions, development programs and observers will be interviewed as well. Qualitative methods are to evaluate institutional performance at all levels of administering regional development.. The interviews will use questions related to the allocation of responsibilities among the different levels of government with respect to regional development, the role of the 6 planning regions, the incentive instruments, the management of the EU pre-accession funds, the transparency of public tenders and other procedures, the accountability, the decision making process, the public-private partnerships, the role of business incubators in local economic development, the positive examples of innovative practices, the negative examples with their problems and solutions.

June-July, 2003
- To analyze and summarize the results of the quantitative and qualitative assessment.
- To prepare a consolidated  report on the existing political, economic and legal framework related to regions and regional governor and its role in regional development matters and the current distribution of roles and responsibilities among levels of government in regional development issues.
- To communicate the results of the report to major stakeholders and present them at a working session of Group 21 “Regional development”, which leads negotiations with the EU on regional development issues;
- To incorporate observations and comments made in the report.

August-September, 2003
- To conduct a comparative analysis of the roles and responsibilities of regional authorities in regional development issues in Poland and Hungary;
- To analyze the EU requirements on institutional structure for managing regional development and pre-accessions funds;
- To analyze the existing requirements and  recommendations formulated by the Congress of Local and Regional authorities at the Council of Europe regarding regional authorities and distribution of competence between central/regional/local authorities;
- To summarize the important results and lessons for Bulgaria in a report
- To communicate the results to major stakeholders in a working session of Working Group 21 “Regional policy”
- To incorporate observations and comments made in the report.

October-December, 2003
- To explore the possibilities for reformulating the role of regional governor in consolidating deconcentrated central government management and monitoring obligations at regional level; to analyze the capacity for improving coordination and cooperation among local, regional and central administrative units on regional development issues and  for strengthening the policy making authority and representative character of regional development councils;
- To formulate the results of the above analysis in a report listing policy recommendations related to the new role of regions and regional governor in overseeing and coordinating regional development in Bulgaria;
- To prepare recommendations and proposals for necessary changes in legislation towards increasing the capacity of regional authorities to serve as a bridge among the central government and the local government structures in maintaining an efficient and transparent regional development policy. The following laws need to be amended: Regional Development Act, Law on the Spatial Planning Act, Laws on Administrative and Territorial Division and Law on the Administrative Servicing of Natural and Legal persons, Law on Local Self-Government and Local Administration. Some Constitutional issues will be discussed as well. The suggestions shall also include by-law recommendations as draft by-laws regulations should be prepared in accordance with the drafts of the amendments among the related laws to provide a comprehensive and integrated approach and the opportunity to both ensure complementarily and the identification potential conflicts in implementation. The objective of the by-laws, among others, should be to increase the transparency within the planning and implementation process.
- Both policy and legislative recommendations shall be incorporated in a report and discussed within Working Group 21, changes incorporated.
- The final product of the project will be a consolidated report including the following sections: current role of regions and regional governor in regional development issues-policy and legal aspects, achievements and drawbacks, needs and  potential for improvement; comparative analysis of the role of regional governor in Hungary and Poland, experiences and lessons learned, EU requirements regarding the absorbtion of Pre-structural funds, the planning regions, division of responsibilities among different tiers of government and the role of regional governor; policy and legal recommendations for reformulating the role of regional governor in Bulgaria.
- The final report will be communicated to major stakeholders, published and disseminated.

January-February, 2004

- Selected parts of the report and some of the background materials generated will be used to prepare targeted manuals for training of trainees at the Institute of Public Administration and European Integration and master students of Public Administration at the University of Sofia”St. Climent Ochridsky”