2.60 Haskovo 2023, Инвестиционен анализ

In the second half of 2023, measures were taken by the local authorities to improve investment conditions in the municipality. The results of the measures taken will be subject to evaluation in the study in 2024.

The main contribution to the creation of an environment for carrying out economic activity in the municipality is made by the mayor and the municipal administration led by him.

The mayor has developed and implements a policy for the management of the municipality, which creates clear rules for the work of the subordinate municipal administration. The rules for regulating the activities of local businesses are publicly available on the website of the municipality; publicity of the registers, of the internal audit rules is ensured. At the same time, there is a lack of sufficient data on the control exercised over municipal companies, public service providers and public procurement contractors. There is a lack of sufficient information about the rules of the consultative process with businesses and citizens and about the results of established forms of interaction with them.

The municipal administration works according to clearly established rules that define the main elements of the process of administrative service to citizens and businesses and are publicly available through the municipality’s website. A system has been built for the provision of administrative services, including electronic services, with the possibility of user feedback and reports on satisfaction with administrative services. The registers are publicly available, and functionalities have been created for making inquiries.

The website of the municipality provides well-structured information about administrative services, rules of operation of the administration and registers, etc. In general, it provides a more limited amount of information about the conditions for doing business. A section “For Citizens and Businesses” has been published on the home page. It links to ‘Buyer Profile’, ‘Auctions & Competitions’, ‘Rental of Halls and Facilities’ and more. The “Current” section links to the same information units as “Public Records”. In the “Administrative service” section, the services provided for the various sectors are specified. In 2023, this section also includes up-to-date data on discussed draft decisions, plans and development policies. There is a lack of information on investment conditions and incentives and reliefs for start-up business initiatives.

The research within the last months of the mandate of the Municipal Council gives grounds for assessing that the local legislative body has a relatively limited contribution to the development of the local economic environment. After the adoption of the Ordinance on the promotion of municipal investments in Haskovo Municipality in May 2022 and the decision to create an industrial zone, there are no examples of intensive actions to implement a policy to attract investments. The study of the capacity and management of the Municipal Council shows certain deficits in asserting the independence of municipal councillors from lobbying pressure, transparency in the work of the committees, transparent mechanisms for interaction with civil organizations and local businesses. Issues of ethical standards do not come to the attention of municipal councillors until the end of the mandate of this council. At the end of 2023, the Municipal Council took measures to create a new industrial zone in the village of Uzundhovo. Measures have been taken to increase transparency in the functioning of its standing committees. The results of the measures taken should be demonstrated and evaluated in the next study.

The local business has relatively good conditions for carrying out its activity – an industrial zone has been created with an established infrastructure that allows new business initiatives to be implemented. At the same time, perceptions of individual business representatives have been established that some of the decisions of local authorities are the result of non-transparent lobbying. The business identified a number of cases of administrative pressure and application of an unequal approach of the control units when carrying out inspections. Local business organisations and companies show a passive approach regarding the opportunities to participate in the consultative process with the local authorities – in general, the business shows no interest in participating in the development and advocacy of positions regarding regulations affecting its activity and neglects the subject of inclusion in anti-corruption initiatives.

Civil society structures (media and civil organisations) have a limited contribution to public control of institutions. There are examples of civil society organisations that have established a practice of demanding accountability from institutions using the tools of legislation on access to public information.