3.31 Pernik 2023, Инвестиционен анализ

In the past year, local authorities continued their efforts to create an environment for business development and to attract investment. An Industrial and Logistics Park has been created on the territory of the municipality, the prospects for development of which are positive given the proximity to the capital as a leading economic centre.

The most significant contribution to the creation of these conditions is made by the mayor and his team, who implement measures to ensure transparency in management and implement a policy to develop the capacity of the local municipal administration. The actions of the local executive are also supported by the Municipal Council, which in 2023 adopted an Ordinance on the Promotion of Class B Investments.

The mayor takes effective actions to ensure transparency in the management of the municipality, increase the capacity of the administration and attract investments and external resources for projects that supplement the municipality’s budget.

After the Municipal Council adopted a management program at the beginning of the mandate, at the end of the mandate it took actions to attract investments. After the adoption of the Ordinance for the Promotion of Class B Investments in May 2023, the municipal council has established the Pernik Industrial and Logistics Zone. The company is a one-person joint-stock company with capital owned by the municipality of Pernik and the General Assembly, which is made up of the members of the Municipal Council. It is registered as the operator of the Pernik Industrial Park. In the assessment of the activity of the Pernik Regional Office, along with the positively evaluated indicators, the lack of transparency regarding the mechanisms for including local business in the formulation of specific proposals for changes in the legal framework and policies for local development should have been indicated.

The municipality maintains a website, the structure of which is aimed more at the needs of citizens. There is no dedicated business information section, such information is found in the “Documents” section, which links to “Buyer Profile” and “Floor Plans”. In the “Resources” section, information on “Public procurement”, “Competitions and tenders”, “European programs” is published. Access through the website of the municipality to the regulations of the Municipal Council is organised in a way that is carried out through successive steps: section “Administration” – “Municipal Council”, with alternative links provided through “Regulations” or through “Normative acts”; in the last two mentioned sections, an Ordinance for the promotion of investments is published. Alternative access is through the website of the Municipal Council.

In order to ensure publicity regarding the activity and conditions for investments, a separate website of the industrial zone has been created, which presents information regarding its advantages; free terrain parameters; a map visualizing the individual properties; contact information for the company team. An “Investment Intent” section has been created with a published form that can be submitted online.

Local businesses have favourable conditions for carrying out their activities. The assessments of its representatives are positive and show an improvement in the business environment; local companies are not subject to abuse of power by local government bodies and control bodies. The created industrial zone, which can serve as a tool for undertaking new economic initiatives, also contributes to this. On the subject of corruption prevention, local companies show a rather indifferent approach, with the expectations being for an initiative on the part of the local authorities.

Civil society structures (media and civil organisations) have a relatively limited contribution to public control of institutions.