Memorable scenes of 2010

Most Bulgarians will remember 2010 for being the second and hardest year of the crisis. Although the economy has revived, Bulgarians, whose money for a rainy day has been somewhat depleted, are still finding it difficult to meet all their daily needs.

What is more, in 2010 Bulgaria could not absorb fully EU structural and cohesion funds. According to Bulgarian Minister of EU Funds Management Tomislav Donchev, although Bulgaria’s absorption of EU funds rose 10 times over one year alone, the real share received by beneficiaries for the last 3 years was a mere 8% of available amounts. Yet, there is also good news: in 2010 the utilized funds exceeded for the first time Bulgaria’s contribution to EU budget. In the first 3 years of the country’s membership, Bulgaria was a net payer to the EU budget- a pretty comic situation provided that Bulgaria, as the poorest country in the Community, was paying more than it was receiving. At the same time, according to KPMG, the country rates among the top 10 countries that are considered tax haven for their flat tax of 10%.

Bulgarians will also remember the last year for a series of vibrantly-named police operations like “Octopus”, “Crocodile”, “All Trumps”, etc. aiming to catch big or small fish of organized crime and political corruption. Very few cases, however, ended with convictions. Perhaps, most disappointing was the “Octopus” case, whose protagonist Alexey Petrov declared to be a puppeteer of the mafia is now bidding for the presidential position. 2010 did not announce a winner in the chase, but 2011 promises an intriguing continuation.

The personnel policy of the GERB party now in rule marked a huge success and as big a failure last year, too. Bulgaria sent to the European Commission excellent economist Kristalina Georgieva, who last December was declared EU Commissioner of the Year and European of the Year by the weekly newspaper European Voice. Somewhat tragicomic, however, was the case of Kalina Ilieva, who was appointed Head of the Paying Agency for EU Funds in Agriculture in Bulgaria. Ms Ilieva turned out to own fake diploma and was appointed to such a responsible position after only a year and a half of service.

On an international level, Bulgaria tied up with two powerful economic partners. On the one hand, China did several significant investments in Bulgaria and proposed the construction of a super-speed train from Beijing to Paris that goes through Bulgaria. On the other, with Dilma Rousseff, who is from Bulgarian origin, becoming the new president of Brazil, Bulgaria can open the doors of South America.

Yet, Bulgaria’s negotiations with Russia about the prices of Russian gas and a few important energy projects were running slowly. Even the newly-born pedigree Karakachan (a dog originating in Bulgaria as a mountain livestock guardian dog) given to PM Vladimir Putin by his counterpart Boyko Borissov could not speed up the talks between the two countries.

Finally, Bulgaria will remember the year for the excavations of part of the remains of John the Baptist. For believers this is a sure sign that Bulgaria is blessed.