Minister Tsekov: There is no problem with the financial provision of municipal projects, political talk is at odds with the facts

There is no problem with the financial provision of municipal projects. Political talk diverges from the facts, the resigned Minister of Regional Development and Public Works, Andrey Tsekov, was categorical. He met with representatives of the Management Board of the National Association of Municipalities in the Republic of Bulgaria, the regional department announced.

For more than an hour and a half, the minister answered questions from the mayors and provided comprehensive information on a number of road infrastructure projects throughout the country.

"The budget law clearly spells out the mechanism by which the investment program for municipal projects will be financed, it is clearly defined that the financing is provided through the central budget with a decree of the Council of Ministers and it is clearly indicated when the amounts are paid," explained the minister. "I mean the funds are provided not from the budget of the Ministry of Planning and Development, but from the central budget and are provided to the regional ministry," Tsekov added.

In front of the mayors, he again stated that the capital expenditure limit for this year of BGN 10 billion has been set aside in the central budget, and another BGN 1.2 billion has been set aside since last year, which has been set aside in the PMS for implementation of the budget. Of these funds, 400 million BGN have been provided to date, it became clear from the words of Andrey Tsekov. According to him, they were even released too early, because for now there are no requests for advance payments from the municipalities.

According to the minister, payments under the program for this year will not exceed BGN 1.5 billion.

In his words, practice shows that until now there is no year in which the municipalities have absorbed more than BGN 1 billion, and the construction industry cannot generate more than BGN 1 billion on an annual basis. Now they have the chance to prove that they can absorb more. This will be a test for both builders and designers, explained the regional minister.

He expressed hope that investments in the public sector will affect the labor market - on the one hand, builders will receive better remuneration, and on the other - it will stimulate craftsmen from abroad to return to Bulgaria. "Because this is the recipe for economic recovery," said Tsekov.

1160 applications for financing of municipal projects have been submitted to the Ministry of Planning and Development from the beginning of January until now, of which over 900 have been considered, 456 financing agreements with a total value of about BGN 1.06 billion have already been signed. The goal is to sign all agreements approved for financing by the end of this month.

During the meeting with the mayors, the minister proposed the idea of creating national legislation with specific rules for the implementation and control of national expenses and, on this basis, creating programs to be included in the national budgets.

The representatives of the Management Board of NAMRB thanked the Minister for the open dialogue and the meetings that they regularly hold with the team of MRDPW and emphasized that with regard to the signed agreements for the financing of municipal projects, this is the first time that an administration has worked with such speed. They also expressed gratitude for the continuous and comprehensive information they receive from the minister and deputy ministers.

Andrey Tsekov, for his part, clearly confirmed the commitment that if the current leadership of the Ministry of Land and Infrastructure is maintained, the monthly meetings with the local government will continue. Moreover, the minister suggested that experts from the department conduct consultations with individual municipalities that need more clarifications on the investment program, so that all issues can be resolved quickly and in an urgent manner.

At today's meeting, the regional minister answered a number of mayors' questions related to the implementation of the procedure for renovating multi-family residential buildings with funds from the National Recovery and Sustainability Plan. The Minister informed them that all the certificates approved for remediation had been checked again and almost all of them confirmed the data originally set.

Asked about the creation of a National Decarbonization Fund, Minister Tsekov was adamant that the idea is good, but the functional responsibilities for its implementation are in the hands of the Minister of Energy. "Because the worst recipe for a program is diluted responsibility," emphasized Tsekov.

When asked by mayors about the construction of the "Hemus" highway, the regional minister explained that the construction of the first to third section is being resumed this month. It is expected that the first section will be completed by the end of this year, and the sections up to and including the third - by the end of 2026. Construction has not started for lots 4, 5 and 6, it is expected that their construction will start in the summer, so that by 2027 the highway will reach Veliko Tarnovo. The construction of the highway is financially secured, emphasized again the minister and added that lots 7 and 8 have problems that are being worked on, and the ninth lot is expected to start next year.

At the meeting, the regional minister gave a detailed report to the mayors about other main and priority road infrastructure objects. Within a month, a public order for the development of a conceptual project for the Veliko Tarnovo - Makaza highway should be announced. The expressway between Mezdra and Botevgrad is expected to be launched by the end of the year. A public tender for major repairs between Mezdra and Vratsa has been launched. The order has also been launched for an expressway from Montana to Sofia with a tunnel through Petrokhan.