Bulgaria

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BASIC FACTS

Capital city: Sofia (Population: 1.2 million)

Area: 109,910 Km2

Population: 7,640,000

Language: Bulgarian

Religion: Orthodox (85%), Muslim (8%), others (7%)

Currency: The Bulgarian Lev is pegged to the euro. 1 EUR = 1.955 BGN.

Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, re-incarnates one of the oldest states in Europe and is located in South eastern Europe, bordering five other countries: Romania to the north (mostly along the Danube), Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Greece and Turkey to the south. The Black Sea defines the extent of the country to the east.

Bulgaria comprises of the classical regions of Moesia, Thrace, and Macedonia. Old European culture in the region started to produce golden artifacts by the fifth millennium BCE.

The country preserves the traditions (in ethnic name, language, and alphabet) of the First Bulgarian Empire (632/681 – 1018), which at times covered most of the Balkans and spread its alphabet, literature and culture among the Slavic and other peoples of Eastern Europe. Centuries later, with the decline of the Second Bulgarian Empire (1185 – 1396/1422), the country came under Ottoman rule for nearly five centuries. Diplomacy re-established Bulgaria as a constitutional monarchy in 1878, with the Treaty of San Stefano marking the birth of the Third Bulgarian Kingdom. After World War II, Bulgaria became a communist state and part of the Eastern Bloc. In 1990, after the Revolutions of 1989, the Communist party gave up its monopoly on power and Bulgaria transitioned to democracy and free-market capitalism.

Currently Bulgaria functions as a parliamentary democracy under a unitary constitutional republic. A member of the European Union since 2007 and of NATO since 2004, it has a population of approximately 7.7 million, with Sofia as its capital and largest city

According to the 2001 census, Bulgaria’s population consists mainly of ethnic Bulgarian (83.9%), with two sizable minorities, Turks (9.4%) and Roma (4.7%). Of the remaining 2.0%, 0.9% comprises some 40 smaller minorities, most prominently in numbers are the Russians, Armenians, Vlachs, Jews, Crimean Tatars and Sarakatsani (historically known also as Karakachans). 1.1% of the population did not declare their ethnicity in the latest census of 2001.

96.3% of the population speak Bulgarian as their mother tongue. Bulgarian, a member of the Slavic language group, remains the only official language, but numbers of speakers of other languages (such as Turkish and Romany) correspond closely to ethnic proportions.

The country has a Roma population estimated at between 200,000 and 450,000. Most Bulgarians (82.6%) belong, at least nominally, to the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, the national Eastern Orthodox Church. Other religious denominations include Islam (12.2%), various Protestant denominations (0.8%) and Roman Catholicism (0.5%); with other denominations, atheists and undeclared totalling approximately 4.1%.

In recent years, Bulgaria has had one of the slowest population growth-rates in the world. Negative population growth has occurred since the early 1990s, due to economic collapse and high emigration. In 1989 the population comprised 9,009,018 people, in 2001 7,950,000 and in 2008 7,640,000. Now Bulgaria faces a severe demographic crisis. Bulgaria has a fertility-rate of 1.4 children per woman as of 2007, with a predicted rate of 1.7 by the end of 2050. The fertility-rate will need to reach 2.2 to restore natural growth in population.

COUNTRY PROFILE

ECONOMY

The economy of Bulgaria declined dramatically during the 1990s with the collapse of the COMECON system and the loss of the Soviet market, to which the Bulgarian economy had been closely tied. The standard of living fell by about 40%, and only recently regained pre-1989 levels in June of 2004. In addition, UN sanctions against Serbia (1992-95) and Iraq took a heavy toll on the Bulgarian economy. The first signs of recovery emerged when GDP grew 1.4% in 1994 for the first time since 1988, and 2.5% in 1995. Inflation, which surged in 1994 to 122%, fell to 32.9% in 1995. During 1996, however, the economy collapsed due to the BSP’s, slow and mismanaged economic reforms, its disastrous agricultural policy, and an unstable and decentralized banking system, which led to an inflation rate of 311% and the collapse of the Lev. When pro-reform forces came into power in the spring 1997, an ambitious economic reform package, including introduction of a currency board regime, was agreed to with the IMF and the World Bank, and the economy began to stabilize. As of 2007 the economy is growing at a steady pace of above 5% a year with budget surpluses and shaky inflation. Future prospects are tied to the country’s increasingly important integration with the European Union Member States. The country is expected to join the Eurozone between 2010 and 2012.

Agriculture and industry in Burgas Province source

External trade & Investment

Since 1990, the bulk of Bulgarian trade has shifted from former COMECON countries primarily to the European Union, although Russian petroleum exports to Bulgaria make it Bulgaria’s single largest trading partner. In December 1996, Bulgaria joined the World Trade Organization. In the early 90’s Bulgaria’s slow pace of privatization, contradictory government tax and investment policies, and bureaucratic red tape kept foreign investment among the lowest in the region. Total direct foreign investment from 1991 through 1996 was $831 million. In the years since 1997, however, Bulgaria has begun to attract substantial foreign investment. In 2004 alone over 2.72 billion euros (3.47 billion US dollars) were invested by foreign companies. In 2005 economists observed a slowdown to about 1.8 billion euros (2.3 billion US dollars) in FDI which is attributed mainly to the end of the privatization of the major state owned companies.

In the European Union

On 1 January 2007 Bulgaria entered the European Union. This led to some immediate international trade liberalization, but there was no shock to the economy. The government is running annual surpluses of above 3%. This fact, together with annual GDP growth of above 5%, has brought the government indebtedness to 22.8% of GDP in 2006 from 67.3% five years earlier. This is to be contrasted with enormous current account deficits. Low interest rates guarantee the availability of funds for investment and consumption. For example, a boom in the real estate market started around 2003 and has not subsided yet. At the same time annual inflation in the economy is variable and during the last five years (2003-2007) has seen a low of 2.3% and high of 7.3%. Most importantly, this poses a threat to the country’s accession to the Eurozone. The Bulgarian government plans for the Euro to replace the Lev in 2010. However, experts predict that this might happen as late as in 2012. From a political point of view, there is a trade-off between Bulgaria’s economic growth and the stability required for early accession to the monetary union. Bulgaria’s per-capita PPP GDP is still only about a third of the EU25 average, while the country’s nominal GDP per capita is about 13% of the EU25 average.

As of 1 January, 2008 the income tax for all citizens is set to a flat rate of 10%. This flat tax is one of the lowest income rates in the world and the lowest income rate in the European Union. The reform was done in hope for higher GDP growth and greater tax collection rates. Some called it a "revolution" in taxation, but the changes were only met with mild discussions and some protests by affected working classes. The proposal was modified to allow for compensating the perceived loses from the changes in the tax formula. The corporate income tax is also 10% as of 1 January, 2007 which is also among the lowest.

HISTORY

The Thracians lived in what is now known as Bulgaria from about 3500 B.C. They were incorporated into the Roman Empire by the first century A.D. At the decline of the empire, the Goths, Huns, Bulgars, and Avars invaded. The Bulgars, who crossed the Danube from the north in 679, took control of the region. Although the country now bears the name of the Bulgars, the Bulgar language and culture soon died out, having been replaced by Slavic language, writing, and religion. In the year 865, Boris I adopted Orthodox Christianity. The Bulgars twice conquered most of the Balkan Peninsula between 893 and 1280. But in 1396 they were invaded by the Ottoman Empire, which made Bulgaria a Turkish province until 1878. www.infoplease.com

Thracian peltast - source

In 1878, Bulgaria became an independent state after the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878). The Congress of Berlin (1878) limited Bulgaria’s territory and fashioned it into a small principality ruled by Alexander of Battenburg.

Alexander was succeeded in 1887 by Prince Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, who declared Bulgaria a kingdom.

www.historyworld.net

During the First Balkan War (1912–1913), Bulgaria and the other members of the Balkan League fought against Turkey to regain Balkan territory. Angered by the small portion of Macedonia it received after the battle (having considered Macedonia an integral part of Bulgaria) the country instigated the Second Balkan War (June–Aug. 1913) against Turkey as well as its former allies. Bulgaria lost the war and all the territory it had gained in the First Balkan War. Bulgaria joined Germany in World War I in the hope of again gaining Macedonia. After this second failure, Ferdinand abdicated in favour of his son, Boris III, in 1918. Boris III squandered Bulgaria’s resources and assumed dictatorial powers in 1934–1935. Bulgaria then fought on the side of the Nazis in World War II, but after Russia declared war on Bulgaria on Sept. 5, 1944, Bulgaria switched sides. Three days later, on Sept. 9, 1944, a Communist coalition took control of the country and set up a government under Kimon Georgiev. www.infoplease.com

Balkan Wars source

A Soviet-style People’s Republic was established in 1947. The general secretary of the Bulgarian Communist Party, Todor Zhikov, resigned in 1989 after 35 years in power. His successor, Peter Mladenov, purged the Politburo, ended the Communist monopoly on power, and held free elections in May 1990 that led to a surprising victory for the Communist Party. Renamed the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), Mladenov was forced to resign in July 1990.

www.infoplease.com, www.wikipedia.org - History of Bulgaria

In October 1991, the Union of Democratic Forces won, forming Bulgaria’s first non-Communist government since 1946. Power shifted back and forth between the pro-Western Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) and the BSP during the 1990s.

POLITICS

Bulgaria joined NATO on 29 March 2004 and signed the European Union Treaty of Accession on 25 April 2005. It became a full member of the European Union on 1 January 2007. The country had joined the United Nations in 1955, and became a founding member of OSCE in 1995. As a Consultative Party to the Antarctic Treaty, Bulgaria takes part in the administration of the territories situated south of 60° south latitude

Georgi Parvanov, the President of Bulgaria since 22 January 2002, won re-election on 29 October 2006 and began his second term in office in January 2007. (Bulgarian voters directly elect their presidents for a five-year term with the right to one re-election.) The president serves as the head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. He also chairs the Consultative Council for National Security. While unable to initiate legislation other than Constitutional amendments, the President can return a bill for further debate, although the parliament can override the President’s veto by vote of a majority of all MPs.

Since 17 August 2005, Sergey Stanishev as Prime Minister has chaired the Council of Ministers, the principal body of the executive branch, presently consisting of 20 ministers. The Prime Minister, usually nominated by the largest parliamentary group, receives the mandate of the President to form a cabinet. From 2009 year is new Bojko Borissow (GERB)and governing party GERB.

Last national elections: 2009

http://www.parties-and-elections.de/bulgaria.html

Last European Parliament election June 2009

See:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Parliament_election,_2009_(Bulgaria)

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/parliament/archive/elections2009/en/bulgaria_en.html

The current governmental coalition comprises of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), National Movement Simeon II (NMSII) and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (representing mainly the Turkish minority).

The Bulgarian unicameral parliament, the National Assembly or Narodno Sabranie, consists of 240 deputies, each elected for four-year terms by popular vote. The votes go to parties or to coalition-lists of candidates for each of the 28 administrative divisions. A party or coalition must win a minimum of 4% of the vote in order to enter parliament. Parliament has the responsibility for enactment of laws, approval of the budget, scheduling of presidential elections, selection and dismissal of the Prime Minister and other ministers, declaration of war, deployment of troops outside of Bulgaria, and ratification of international treaties and agreements.

The Parliament Building - source

The Bulgarian judicial system consists of regional, district and appeals courts, as well as a Supreme Court of Cassation. In addition, Bulgaria has a Supreme Administrative Court and a system of military courts. A qualified majority of two-thirds of the membership of the Supreme Judicial Council elects the Presidents of the Supreme Court of Cassation and of the Supreme Administrative Court, as well as the Prosecutor General, from among its members; the President of the Republic then appoints those elected. The Supreme Judicial Council has charge of the self-administration and organization of the Judiciary.

The Constitutional Court supervises the review of the constitutionality of laws and statutes brought before it, as well as the compliance of these laws with international treaties that the Government has signed. Parliament elects the twelve members of the Constitutional Court by a two-thirds majority. The members serve for a nine-year term.

The territory of the Republic of Bulgaria subdivides into provinces and municipalities. In all, Bulgaria has 28 provinces, each headed by a provincial governor appointed by the government. In addition, the country includes 263 municipalities.

Military

The military of Bulgaria consists of three services: the Bulgarian Land Forces, the Bulgarian Navy and the Bulgarian Air Force. The armed forces have as their patron saint Sveti Georgi (St. George), and Bulgarians celebrate his feast day, 6 May nationally as Valour and Army Day. Despite active participation in all major European wars since the end of the nineteenth century, Bulgarian forces have never lost a flag.

Bulgaria first became a major military power in Europe under Khan Krum and Tsar Simeon I, in a series of wars with the Byzantine Empire for control of the Balkan Peninsula, in the late ninth century. By the use of approximately 12,000 heavy cavalry in tactics resembling those of feudal knights, Simeon I’s forces reached as far as the Byzantine capital, Constantinople, in A.D. 896. A formal peace treaty lasted until 912, when both sides became engaged in a war which ended with several major defeats of the Byzantines, including one of the bloodiest battles in the Middle Ages at Anchialus in 917. Bulgaria again became a significant military power under the rule of the Asen dynasty in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. During the rule of Tsar Kaloyan (1197-1207) Bulgaria became the first European country to defeat the Crusader knights.

Since gaining total independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1878, Bulgaria has functioned as a minor European power, frequently included in plans and wars of the Great Powers. In 1912, the Bulgarian forces invented the world’s first aircraft dropped bombs and soon after became the first military in the world to utilize aviation bombardment, in the siege of Odrin. Thus Bulgaria’s air force is not only one of the oldest in the world, but also an early innovator in aviation military technology and "air-to-surface" attack strategies/tactics.

Following a series of reductions beginning in 1989, the active troops of Bulgaria’s army number as many as 68,450 today. Reserve forces include 303,000 soldiers and officers. "PLAN 2004", an effort to modernize Bulgaria’s armed forces, aims to better meet the military needs of NATO and the European Union.

Bulgarian land forces - source

Bulgarian military personnel have participated in international missions in Cambodia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq. Starting in 2008, Bulgaria will completely abolish compulsory military service. Bulgaria’s naval and air forces became fully professional in 2006, with the land-forces scheduled to follow suit in 2008. Bulgaria’s Special Forces have conducted missions with the SAS, Delta Force, KSK, and the Spetsnaz of Russia.

Provinces and municipalities

Between 1987 and 1999 Bulgaria consisted of nine provinces (oblasti, singular oblast''''); since 1999, it has consisted of twenty-eight. All take their names from their respective capital cities:

CULTURE

A country often described as lying at the crossroads linking the East and West, Bulgaria functioned as the hub of Slavic Europe during much of the Middle Ages, exerting considerable literary and cultural influence over the Eastern Orthodox Slavic world by means of the Preslav and Ohrid Literary Schools. Bulgaria also gave the world the Cyrillic alphabet, the second most-widely used alphabet in the world, which originated in these two schools in the 10th century A.D.

A number of ancient civilizations, most notably the Thracians, Greeks, Romans, Slavs, and Bulgars, have left their mark on the culture, history and heritage of Bulgaria. The country has nine UNESCO World Heritage Sites:

the early medieval large rock relief Madara Rider.
two Thracian tombs (one in Sveshtari and one in Kazanlak)
three monuments of medieval Bulgarian culture (the Boyana Church, the Rila Monastery and the Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo)
two examples of natural beauty: the Pirin National Park and the Srebarna Nature Reserve
the ancient city of Nesebar, a unique combination of European cultural interaction, as well as, historically, one of the most important centres of sea-borne trade in the Black Sea

Madara rider - source

Note also the Varna Necropolis, a 3500-3200 B.C. burial-site, purportedly containing the oldest examples of worked gold in the world.

Bulgaria’s contribution to humanity continued throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, with individuals such as John Atanasoff — a United States citizen of Bulgarian descent, regarded as the father of the digital computer. A number of noted opera-singers (Nicolai Ghiaurov, Boris Christoff, Raina Kabaivanska, Ghena Dimitrova), Anna Veleva, the world-famous harpist Anna-Maria Ravnopolska-Dean and successful artists (Christo Yavashev, Pascin, Vladimir Dimitrov) popularized the culture of Bulgaria abroad.

One of the best internationally known artists, Valya Balkanska sang the song Izlel e Delyu Haydutin, part of the Voyager Golden Record selection of music included in the two Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977. The Bulgarian State Television Female Vocal Choir also known as Mystery of Bulgarian voices has also attained a considerable degree of fame.

A unique custom called nestinarstvo distinguishes the Strandja region. This custom includes dancing into fire or over live embers.

Here you can find Bulgarian traditions as well as their explanations.

www.visittobulgaria.com

This link includes everything about the historic influences of Bulgaria.

www.picturesofbulgaria.com

In this link you can find a list of most of Bulgaria’s famous composers. www.wikipedia.org - List of famous Bulgarians

Religion in Bulgaria is different than in western Europe, in this link you can find a description of the Orthodox church

www.wikipedia.org - Religion in Bulgaria

COMMUNICATION

Bulgaria is a fairly formal society - initial greetings are therefore formal and reserved.
Greetings consist of a firm handshake, direct eye contact and the appropriate greeting for the time of day.
Address people with their titles (if you know them) or with Mr "Gospodin" / Mrs "Gospozha" followed by the surname.
Only friends and family address each other with first names and possibly a hug or kiss.
One should always wait for their Bulgarian counterparts to determine when it is appropriate to become this informal. Business cards are exchanged on initial meetings.
If your company/firm has been established a long time (25-50 years) include the founding date on your business card.
Add any academic qualifications you may have too.
Translating cards into Bulgarian may not always be a necessity but it would certainly impress recipients.

Business Meetings

Relationship building is important in Bulgaria. Try to spend time getting to know people before getting down to serious business.
Initial meetings should be used as an introduction. The next meetings can then be used for more business focused discussions.
If you are aware that your counterparts speak only Bulgarian, hire an interpreter and fully brief them on your needs.
Eye contact is important as it relays trust and sincerity.
Any presentations should be factual and backed with statistics. If possible try to present information visually.
Bulgarians do not appreciate too much "talk" so avoid over zealous statements.
Once meetings have started to get into more serious matters they will start to proceed at a much slower pace as details are digested, scrutinized and discussed.
Bulgarians are not deadline oriented. They prefer to ensure they have comprehensively covered a topic before bringing proceedings to a close.
Be patient and do not rush meetings - successful ventures in Bulgaria will never happen overnight.
Meetings often last much longer than anticipated. Do not rush the process.
It is important to retain a sense of formality and professionalism. Any slip into casual behaviour may not be appreciated.
Bulgarians have a tendency to talk in a roundabout way when concerned about not saying anything that could be used against them later. If you are asking questions and not getting direct answers try asking the question in different ways.

www.kwintessential.co.uk

TRAVEL and TOURISM

In the northern-hemisphere winter, Samokov, Borovets, Bansko and Pamporovo become well-attended ski-resorts. Summer resorts exist on the Black Sea at Sozopol, Nessebur, Golden Sands, Sunny Beach, Sveti Vlas, Albena, Saints Constantine and Helena and many others. Spa resorts such as Bankya, Hisarya, Sandanski, Velingrad, Varshets and many others attract visitors throughout the year. Bulgaria has started to become an attractive tourist destination because of the quality of the resorts and prices below those found in Western Europe.

Borovets - source

Bulgaria has enjoyed a substantial growth in income from international tourism over the past decade. Beach-resorts attract tourists from Germany, Russia, Scandinavia, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The ski-resorts are a favourite destination for British and Irish tourists.

Bulgaria now attracts close to 7 million visitors yearly. Tourism in Bulgaria makes a major contribution towards the country’s annual economic growth of 6% to 6.5%.

Sozopol - source

Travel

www.bulgariatravel.org

www.travel-bulgaria.com

Maps

www.bgmaps.com

Tourism

If you want get some interesting information about airlines and airports, hotels, sea-resorts, mountain-resorts, rent a car, weather and sports see:

www.bulgariantourism.com

Sights

If you want know more about interesting places in Bulgaria, follow this link. You will find here museums, old towns, galleries, romantic places, monuments, castles, and churches. http://www.bulgariatravel.org/eng/sights.php