CEEOL - Search Result

#01 Bulgaria's Participation in EU Structural Funds

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 1999

Bulgaria's accession to the European Union is the foremost strategic objective of the country. This goal both serves the national interest of the establishment of a developed, democratic state and coincides with Bulgaria's readiness to actively participate in the realization of a united Europe. The conclusions of the European Council in December 1997 in Luxembourg opened the way for the active involvement of the 10 countries of Central and Eastern Europe in the preparations for their accession to the EU. It should be noted that the inclusion of Bulgaria in the next enlargement of the EU is an expression of the highly positive assessment of the democratic processes taking place in the country. At the same time, these conclusions specify requirements which need to be fulfilled by Bulgaria as a condition for Bulgaria's accession to the EU. Further, meeting the second and the third group of the Copenhagen criteria requires the complete restructuring of the national economy, the construction of modern infrastructures, the introduction of competitive principles of fair competition and increased social activities with the goal of accession to the policies and the principles of the EU. The present report examines the preparation of Bulgaria for future participation in the structural policies of the EU with the purpose of achieving economic and social harmonization on the basis of the introduction of principles of regional and social policy and the development of infrastructures in the area of transport and telecommunications. Structural funds are among the instruments used to achieve the aims of economic and social harmonization, and thus the preparation for their most effective and efficient use during the pre-accession period is very important. Within this context, the report examines the necessary organizational, administrative, legal and financial measures which must be undertaken in the pursuit of successful future participation in the structural funds of the EU.

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#02 Social Policy Aspects of Bulgaria's EU Accession

Author(s): Teodora Noncheva / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 1999

The social policy of the European Union aims to reduce the most substantial differences in the national schemes and programs, to facilitate the free movement of workers, to create prerequisites for employment growth and improvement of the working conditions, to raise the level of qualification and to promote the retraining and the reintegration of people who lost their job because of structural economic changes or for other reasons with social implications. Ensuring of the national social security systems' conformity with the criteria for membership in the European Union is of substantial importance for the entire process of democratisation and integration in Europe. At the same time these systems determine the internal potential of the applicant countries for accession. That is where the actuality of the questions, put in this study stems from: What is the scope of the field of action of the economic and social criteria for integration in the social sphere? To what extent does the Bulgarian system for social protection correspond to the European models and values? What are the perspectives for development of the social reform in the light of the strategy for accession to the European Union? These questions do not have a simple answer, but nevertheless the analysis of the social problems of the integration is the main challenge at the current stage of the social reform.

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#02bg Структурните фондове на Европейския Съюз: кратко ръководство

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): Bulgarian / Publication Year: 1999

The Structural Funds are financial instruments for implementing the European Union's policy of economic and social cohesion between regions. Implementing a policy aimed at reducing the disparities in the level of development of the various regions and the backwardness of the least developed regions, including agriculture, by reallocating financial resources, has made a significant contribution to economic stability in the EU and to raising the level of employment.

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#03 Preparing for EU Accession Negotiations

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 1999

The extraordinary dynamics of the process of European integration in the second half of the Nineties has brought forward the need for numerous adjustments, different in depth and in scope, in the associated Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs) having applied for membership of the European Union. For some countries these processes have developed more rapidly than expected and the adjustments in question have been more or less prom-pted by the aspiration not to lag behind in the overall process of approximation of-Central and Eastern Europe to the EU. The environment is dynamic: the process of integration develops in parallel to, and sometimes even coincides with, the process of political and economic transformation typical of the transition to a democratic society with a functioning market economy. Thus, in the desire to reach as soon as possible the goal - full membership of the Union -it is particularly difficult, but also very important, to bear in mind the useful lessons of the past and the experience gained over previous EU enlargements. The purpose of this paper is to draw attention to some typical challenges relating to the negotiations for EU membership, both in the short and in the medium term perspective. This could be a contribution to the development of the various elements of Bulgaria's preparation for accession negotiations. Emphasis is laid on the model of negotiations, on the various underlying principles, on the indispensable preparation for their conducting, on some organisational and other aspects of their successful development. In this respect, significant reflection is devoted to the lessons to be drawn from the fourth enlargement of the Union. The negotiations for accession to the European Union will take place in a given context which would undoubtedly influence their dynamics and predetermine their successful completion. The context will have both external and internal dimensions, the first connected with the changes in and the readiness of the European Union itself, and the second with the preparation of the candidate country concerned. For the purposes of this paper, attention is mainly drawn to the internal adjustments needed by CEECs, rather than on the processes within the Union which have already been discussed in numerous publications. The historical lessons, the theoretical and practical background described in the first part of the paper and the recommendations on Bulgaria's preparation in the second part are based on an analysis of existing studies, monographs, documents and materials devoted to these problems, as well as on some practical observations arrived at in the course of this process. The clear prospect of opening accession negotiations with Bulgaria in the foreseeable future makes it particularly necessary to refine the overall preparation of the country in order to ensure the indispensable conditions for the conduct of the negotiations. Thus, the conclusions offered below should be regarded as practical recommendations for a more successful preparation of Bulgaria for membership of the Union. The collected material could also be used as reference for some typical problems and for the approaches used to solve them.

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#04 The Role of Political Parties in Bulgaria's Accession to the EU

Author(s): Antony Todorov / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 1999

The process of Bulgaria's EU integration is a multifaceted political, institutional, economic, socio-structural, and psychological process. It is essentially a complex social transformation aimed at establishing particular public structures, standards, consensual attitudes, and strategies, compatible with EU and acceptable to its member countries. This process involves diverse actors who cannot be reduced solely to the efforts of state institutions and above all, of the legislature and the executive. One of the most powerful, though frequently overlooked, channels bringing Bulgaria closer to EU, are political parties. The inclusion of political parties in the domestic political process cannot be reduced exclusively or primarily to the time in which they exercise executive power. In opposition or even outside parliament, political parties can still occasionally exert considerable influence over the conditions in which foreign policy is conceived and implemented. Parties can sometimes be an exceptionally important source for Bulgaria's international image which strongly influences the positions of the country's international partners, and in particular, the EU member states, in terms of Bulgaria's accession to EU. Political parties, along with everything else, have several essential functions immediately related to Bulgaria's integration in EU: • they are very frequently the channels for the introduction of European po-litical standards in Bulgarian politics; • they represent the Bulgarian political palette of strategies and ideas; • they create an additional lobby network among the EU political class in favor of Bulgaria's accession; • they are in position to structure political life in Bulgaria in line with EU standards. That is why the study of the role of political parties in the process of Bulgaria's EU integration is an essential element of the conception of a general idea, and theoretical model, of the process. In theoretical terms, parties are part of the political system and a connecting link between the political, and civil, society. Their role in foreign policy is typically related to positions of power. But the in-ternationalization of party life in the past decade has provided parties with new opportunities for participation in the foreign political process. In Bulgarian political life parties are an important, if not the chief, instrument for assimilation of foreign political experience. Their activity as international actors, their international contacts, the international forums organized by them, are an irreplaceable channel through which public opinion in Bulgaria gets informed about foreign political standards, about the rules and norms of political life in EU countries, for instance. Naturally, the influence of parties on the foreign policy and international image of a given country is a function of its political system and above all, of the role, status, and functions of political parties within it. Since 1989 Bulgaria has developed a "European" type of party system, in which political organizations are institutional structures striving to represent politically significant social interests. Under this model, parties are involved in the domestic political process as representatives of a certain part of public opinion. In the U.S., along with that function, parties are involved in foreign policy mainly through the influence they have in various foundations which sponsor projects and research institutions. In a sense, the American party-system model is based more on the "expert" participation of political parties in the foreign policy making. In Bulgaria there are few elements of expert participation of parties in the foreign political process, though certain "think tanks", related in some form or other to political parties, do exert some influence, largely through developing and presenting before foreign partners alternatives to government policies.

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#05 Bulgaria’s Capital Markets in the Context of EU Accession: A Status Report

Author(s): Stefan Petranov,Jeffrey Miller / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 1999

The objective of this report is to contribute to the discussion on the capital market reform in Bulgaria in preparation for eventual integration into the European Union. The report views the accession issue on two levels. The first one is whether the necessary capital market institutions and legislation are in place, while the second one is whether capital markets function in a manner that supports economic growth and development. The impetus for the development of the capital markets in Bulgaria was the first wave of the mass privatization program. This program was similar to the program implemented earlier in the Czech Republic. At the same time the Czech Republic is among the first countries in transition that has been invited to negotiate accession with the European Union. For these reasons it is useful to compare the process of capital market developments in both countries. However, it should be taken into consideration that because of the problems that have surfaced recently in the Czech capital markets, the Czech example does not necessarily furnish solutions to the problems that are likely to arise. A large number of the companies are listed on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange-Sofia, but in practice the majority of the smaller ones have not been traded at all. While the unadjusted market capitalization figure amounts to roughly 0 million, this includes all investment funds, holding companies and all shares in partially privatized state owned companies. The actual figure for shares not held by the Government and available for trading on the BSE-Sofia is probably closer to 5 million. This works out to 1 per participant in the mass privatization program, which is a little above one-month’s salary. The market also has very low levels of turnover. Turnover figures at the individual company level are available only for trades on the BSE-Sofia. Most company shares have been traded very few times since the stock market opened. Only eight companies have traded shares in more than half of the sessions for which they were registered.

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#06 Corruption and Trafficking: Monitoring and Prevention (1st edition)

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2000

Corruption and Trafficking: Monitoring and Prevention titles the new brochure, recently published by the Center for the Study of Democracy of its Reports and Analyses series. It is the first analytical output of the newly founded Expert group on corruption and illegal trafficking as part of Coalition 2000 anti-corruption activities. The phenomenon of illicit trafficking has become one of the most important sources for the “shadow economy” in Bulgaria throughout the 90ies. Its growth was caused by a number of international and internal factors as well; the most crucial of which is the weakening of the post-communist state and the spread of corruption practices among state officials. Hence the emerging of the criminally interwoven corruption/trafficking involve state officials (policemen, customs officers, senior civil servants and politicians) on the one hand, and semi-criminal groups and local mafia on the other. Bulgarian “contraband channels” also constitute a part of the wider network of transnational crime. In the forthcoming brochure, however, the emphasis is on Bulgarian trans-border crime, rather than on its international ramifications. The brochure is composed of three parts: - an analysis of trans-border crime in Bulgaria during the 90ies; - a review of the sociological and statistical methods of measuring illicit trafficking; - Practically oriented proposals with the aim of curbing corruption and trafficking.

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#09 Corruption and Trafficking: Monitoring and Prevention. Assessment Methodologies and Models of Counteracting Transborder Crime (Second revisited and amended edition)

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2000

This is the second updated edition under the same title, published by the Center for the Study of Democracy of its Reports/ Analyses series to be distributed among participants in Regional Coordination Meeting of Subtable "Justice and Home Affairs" of Stability Pact Working Table III, held in Sofia on October 3rd, 2000. This latest analytical report is the outcome of the efforts of non-government organizations and state institutions, and of independent experts and journalists as well within the framework of the Coalition 2000 process. Launched in 1997, Coalition 2000 strives to support the restriction and curbing of corrupt practices in Bulgarian society, including regular monitoring of public perceptions and attitudes towards corruption. The illicit trafficking growth, as one of the most important sources of local "gray economy" throughout the 90ies, was caused by a number of international and internal factors, the most crucial of which being the weakening of the post-communist state and the spread of corruption practices among state officials. The threat on society posed by the interlacing of the interests both of crossborder crime perpetrators and the associated corrupt public officials (customs officials being the most alarming example according to public opinion), became a serious public concern. This initiated the necessity to analyze the phenomenon and to identify adequate monitoring and counteraction measures, moreover this type of crime finds further confirmation in experts' estimate that a large portion of the local gray economy is related to smuggling of goods and the proceeds of the respective unlawful activities.

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#10 Smuggling in Southeast Europe. The Yugoslav Wars and the Development of Regional Criminal Networks in the Balkans

Author(s): Marko Hajdinjak / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2002

Smuggling in Southeast Europe analyzes and reviews the connection between the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia and the growth of the trans-border crime in the region, and also looks at the related issue of corruption. The paper highlights the decisive impact the Yugoslav wars had on the development of the regional criminal networks, which were often set up and maintained not only with the knowledge, but even with active participation of the highest state officials. The research also represents a contribution to the study of conflicts in the Western Balkans. The majority of existing interpretations of causes, course and consequences of the Yugoslav wars try to provide the answers through ethno-political explanations. They unjustly ignore the importance that interweaving of interests of political elites, the organized crime groups, which appeared in this period, and the "mediating class" of corrupt state officials had in this process. The paper is divided in three parts: • An analysis of the causes and course of emergence of Balkan smuggling channels in the context of Yugoslav wars and international sanctions; • A review of the recent developments in trans-border crime in Southeast Europe; • An overview of prevention efforts, undertaken both by the regional governments and the international community’ The first part analyzes the emergence of officially sanctioned "state-building" smuggling in those parts of the former Yugoslavia, which were involved in the war. The intermediary role of Albania, Bulgaria, Macedonia and Romania is also discussed. In these four countries, smuggling networks were not developed under open patronage of the governments, but the role of high-positioned politicians was nevertheless extremely important. The second part traces the evolution of the initial semi-official smuggling channels and their transformation into "classical" criminal networks. The so-called "suitcase trade," cigarette smuggling, smuggling of narcotics, and the trafficking in human beings are discussed in more detail.

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#11 Corruption, Trafficking and Institutional Reform

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2002

The present report summarizes researches and discussions conducted by members of the expert group within the framework of the Bulgarian anti-corruption initiative Coalition 2000 established in 1997. The report is dedicated to one of the most serious problems of the Bulgarian transition towards market economy, stable democratic institutions and legal state. The exploding growth of trans-border crime during the last 12 years has led to the emergence of criminal infrastructure, developed and maintained by criminal groups and semi-legal "power groups," which have appeared in the mentioned period. The trans-border crime in Bulgaria is a part of the new network of international organized crime, which was established after the end of the Cold War and which is closely connected to the regional channels of smuggling and trafficking. Smuggling (including drug smuggling) and trafficking are in particular the main sources of income for organized crime in the country.

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#12 The Drug Market in Bulgaria

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2003

The Center for the Study of Democracy has undertaken a special inquiry into the topic of drug abuse - which was fueled by the drug epidemic of the late 1990s and has grown to become a real social threat - and the problem of drug dealing, which is a major mechanism for the generation of organized crime in Bulgaria. This report addresses drug supply and demand in Bulgaria with the ambition of mapping a vast information void and identifying the basic mechanisms and stakeholders of the drug market. However, the peculiarities of drug diffusion and consumption do not allow the use of the standard suite of economic research tools and vehicles throughout the study. This analysis has been divided into three sections. The first addresses the genesis of drug distribution, while the second describes its structure and functioning. The findings about supply presented in the first two parts are based on a series of in-depth interviews with dealers of different groups of drugs, long-term drug users, with police and security officers (experienced in combating drug traffic, drug production, and drug dealing), doctors, and civil organizations engaged in treatment services to drug addicts. Section 3 highlights drug demand, and brings into play the findings of the First National Population Survey on Drug Consumption in Bulgaria conducted by Vitosha Research. For the purpose of this study, CSD and Vitosha Research used the research tools of the European Monitoring Center on Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA). While paying attention to a variety of views, the team of authors has tried to find common ground upon which to evaluate the actual number of drug users in the country. Even if population-based surveys are often unreliable due to stigmatized and hidden patterns of drug use, they are the type of surveys that provide a comprehensive representation of the situation in the country, as well as reference material for later in-depth studies.In addition, a series of indirect variables, tailored to Bulgarian circumstances, were drawn up to register psychoactive substance use. Two more surveys, of the qualitative type, were conducted: one among heroin addicts and frequent users of soft drugs, and another among experts and treatment agencies. This report was developed by the CSD as part of project evaluating the patterns of drug supply and demand in Bulgaria.

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#13 Partners in Crime: The Risk of Symbiosis between the Security Sector and Organized Crime in Southeast Europe

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2004

The penetration of the organized crime into the security sectors of the countries in transition is one of the darkest aspects of the post-communist transformations of states. During the past 15 years the growing impact and influence of organized criminal groups was felt not only in the countries in transition but also in the European Union. This process was facilitated by the increasingly free movement of people, goods and finances around Europe. The report is a necessary contribution to heightening public awareness of the considerable risks arising from criminal partnership within the security sector in Bulgaria and the Western Balkans and the need for measures to counteract and prevent it.

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#14 Weapons under Scrutiny: Implementing Arms Export Controls and Combating Small Arms Proliferation in Bulgaria

Author(s): Philip Gounev,Emil Tsenkov,Bernardo Mariani,Larry Attree / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2004

The report concludes that despite the evolution of Bulgaria’s arms export controls and its relatively clean record, compared to most of the 1990s, there is still room for improvement. The best approach to tackling all the issues raised in this report is through stricter implementation of the new export control mechanism adopted in 2002. The report is divided into five parts. Part one provides an analysis of the social and economic reasons that have contributed to the reluctance among Bulgarian politicians to strengthen arms controls. It describes the transformation of the defense industry in the post-Communist transition period, as well as its current state. Part two provides an analytical description of Bulgaria’s arms control mechanism. Part three examines the factors contributing to illegal arms exports from Bulgaria and offers some data from recent cases. Part four focuses on the potential social, economic, and political effects of stronger arms controls. The last section offers a number of recommendations for the improvement of the export-control system.

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#14bg Българският износ на оръжие: оценка на контролния механизъм върху експорта на малки оръжия и леко въоръжение

Author(s): Philip Gounev,Emil Tsenkov,Bernardo Mariani,Larry Attree / Language(s): Bulgarian / Publication Year: 2004

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#15 Transportation, Smuggling and Organized Crime

Author(s): Tihomir Bezlov,Philip Gounev,Emil Tzenkov,Petkan Iliev / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2004

The report analyses the participation of transportation companies in smuggling practices, more specifically: • it examines and describes a range of companies and individuals involved in organized crime groups whose main business is the trafficking of consumer goods. • it also gives and overview of the criminal and semi-legal networks involved in smuggling Chinese and Turkish goods. • it presents new data on oil and oil products smuggling. • it examines the role of duty-free shops and their involvement in illicit cigarettes imports.

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#16 Corruption and Tax Compliance. Policy and Administration Challenges

Author(s): Konstantin Pashev / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2006

National and international corruption indices suggest that the Bulgarian tax administration has an important role to play in fighting corruption. While the general public and the business community are inclined to think better of the tax administration, in terms of the levels and spread of corruption, by comparison with other institutions, such as customs, the police or the judiciary, corruption in the tax administration is still admittedly rather high. Business largely believes that most, if not all, tax officers are involved in corruption. Over the last five years, one out of five businesses on average has come under corruption pressure at the hands of tax officers. While they would not go as far as to accept the taxpayers’ perception of the situation, members of the tax administration do not deny the problem. They see the administration’s functional areas for Tax Audit and Operational Control as worst affected in terms of, respectively, the amounts of money changing hands and the frequency of such transactions. International surveys are inconclusive about the level of corruption in the Bulgarian tax administration on a comparison basis. The World Economic Forum rates it as relatively low within the enlarged European Union. By contrast, the World Bank has found it to be higher than corruption levels in most of the Balkans and the former Soviet republics. The purpose of this study is not primarily to add another estimate of the level and scale of tax corruption in Bulgaria but rather, to contribute to an in-depth diagnosis of the phenomenon in terms of its drivers at work in individual and institutional behaviour.National and international corruption indices suggest that the Bulgarian tax administration has an important role to play in fighting corruption. While the general public and the business community are inclined to think better of the tax administration, in terms of the levels and spread of corruption, by comparison with other institutions, such as customs, the police or the judiciary, corruption in the tax administration is still admittedly rather high. Business largely believes that most, if not all, tax officers are involved in corruption. Over the last five years, one out of five businesses on average has come under corruption pressure at the hands of tax officers. While they would not go as far as to accept the taxpayers’ perception of the situation, members of the tax administration do not deny the problem. They see the administration’s functional areas for Tax Audit and Operational Control as worst affected in terms of, respectively, the amounts of money changing hands and the frequency of such transactions. International surveys are inconclusive about the level of corruption in the Bulgarian tax administration on a comparison basis. The World Economic Forum rates it as relatively low within the enlarged European Union. By contrast, the World Bank has found it to be higher than corruption levels in most of the Balkans and the former Soviet republics. The purpose of this study is not primarily to add another estimate of the level and scale of tax corruption in Bulgaria but rather, to contribute to an in-depth diagnosis of the phenomenon in terms of its drivers at work in individual and institutional behaviour.

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#17 Police Stops and Ethnic Profiling in Bulgaria

Author(s): Tihomir Bezlov,Martin Dimov,Philip Gounev,Nikoleta Yordanova / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2006

Between June and December 2005 the Center for the Study of Democracy and Vitosha Research, supported by the Open Society Justice Initiative carried out a study of police stops. The resulting report Police Stops and Ethnic Profiling in Bulgaria examines the use of stops by the Bulgarian police, focusing on the practices of disproportionate stops of members of the Roma ethnic minority. The report also highlights issues related to police abuse during stops as well as crime among in Roma communities. The study is part of a Europe-wide initiative aimed to map discriminatory police practices across Europe. In addition to Bulgaria, research was carried out in Spain, Hungary and Russia indicating that there is disproportionate treatment of minorities by the police in all these countries. Police stops are the main point of contact between officers and citizens. Police officers view stops as essential for detecting and preventing crime. Therefore, the appropriate use of this tool is crucial to police efficiency, whereas when used in the wrong way, it could seriously deteriorate the relations between citizens and the police. The findings and the report were launched at a public meeting of the National Crime Prevention Commission on September 19, 2006.

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#18 Corruption in Public Procurement: Risks and Reform Policies

Author(s): Konstantin Pashev,Assen Dyulgerov,Georgi Kaschiev / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2006

Public procurement is among those spheres in the management of the public sector in Bulgaria which are characterized by the highest corruption risk. Generally speaking, the abuses in this sphere relate to the awarding of the public procurement contract to a pre-selected supplier to the detriment of the public interest through violation of the principles of competition for the purpose of gaining personal benefit. The report examines the corruption in public procurement and assesses the losses from it. It also focuses on big corruption in public procurement with a view to the fine-tuning of the policy tools. This type of corruption covers all transactions and procedures which fall or should fall within the scope of the public procurement legislation. These are most of the supplies whose price or qualitative parameters are subject to negotiation between the contracting authorities in the public sector and the suppliers from the private sector.

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#19 Corruption in the Healthcare Sector in Bulgaria

Author(s): Konstantin Pashev / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2007

At a time of heightened social sensitivity to persisting problems in the Bulgarian healthcare system, the report examines the causes and consequences of corruption in the Bulgarian healthcare. In the context of slow institutional reforms the analysis reveals the incentives of medical personnel for corruption, as well as the size and scope of corruption in the Bulgarian healthcare sector.

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#21 Civil Society in Bulgaria: Trends and Risks

Author(s): Emil Tzenkov,Todor Yalamov,Todor Galev,Pavel Antonov,Svetla Encheva,Boyko Todorov,Yanita Georgieva,Teodora Georgieva / Language(s): English / Publication Year: 2011

The current analysis depicts the major trends in and risks to the development of civil society in Bulgaria. Three groups of risks are identified related to the establishment of public-private partnerships, the capture of civil society by politicians at local and national level, and the nature of commercial activities performed by non-profit organizations. The suggested legislative changes and measures target state and municipal structures related to non-profit organizations. In addition, this paper outlines measures aimed at self-regulation and greater transparency in the "third sector".

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Series:Center for the Study of Democracy - CSD Reports