Bulgaria: Black Sea Diamond

Bulgaria: Black Sea Diamond
Bulgaria is located in Southeastern Europe, bordering the
Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey. It has a total area
of 110,910 sq km, 110,550 sq km of which is land; with
water comprising 360 sq km. this makes Bulgaria slightly
larger than Tennessee. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece,
Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, and last but not least Turkey.
The climate is temperate with cold, damp winters and hot,
dry summers. Bulgaria is rich in bauxite, copper, lead,
zinc, coal, timber and arable land. Bulgaria's location is
strategic because it is near the Turkish Straits; Bulgaria
also controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East
and Asia. Bulgaria has a population of 7,385,367 (2006) and
a population growth rate of 0.86 per cent (2006), with 68.7
per cent between 15-64 years old.

Background

The Bulgars, a Central Asian Turkic tribe, merged with the
local Slavic inhabitants in the late 7th century to form
the first Bulgarian state. In succeeding centuries,
Bulgaria struggled with the Byzantine Empire to assert its
place in the Balkans, but by the end of the 14th century
the country was overrun by the Ottoman Turks. Northern
Bulgaria attained autonomy in 1878 and all of Bulgaria
became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1908.
Bulgaria became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist
domination ended in 1990, when Bulgaria held its first
multiparty election since World War II, and began the
contentious process of moving toward political democracy
and a market economy while combating inflation,
unemployment, corruption, and crime. The country joined
NATO in 2004 and the EU in 2007. Bulgaria accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction.

Economy

Bulgaria entered the European Union on 1 January 2007. The
government is committed to economic reform and responsible
fiscal planning. Minerals, including coal, copper, and
zinc, play an important role in industry. In 1997,
macroeconomic stability was reinforced by the imposition of
a fixed exchange rate of the lev against the German D-mark
- the currency is now fixed against the Euro, and the
negotiation of an IMF standby agreement. Low inflation and
steady progress on structural reforms have improved the
business environment; Bulgaria has averaged 5.1 per cent
growth since 2000 and has begun to attract significant
amounts of FDI.

Tourism has always been a big industry in the country, and
is still booming: one of the 130 hotels in Slanchev Bryag,
one of the most popular resorts in Eastern Europe. The
government has pledged to maintain the fundamental economic
policy objectives, i.e. retaining the Currency Board,
practising sound financial policies, accelerating
privatisation, and pursuing structural reforms. Economic
growth continued in 2005 and 2006.

Agricultural output has been growing in recent years.
Farming is more important than stock-breeding. The
prevalence of mechanisation is higher than most other
Eastern European countries. There are more than 150,000
tractors, 10,000 combines, alongside aeroplanes and other
equipment.

Industry is of great importance for the economy. Although
Bulgaria is not very rich in reserves of coal, oil, and
gas, the country is a major producer of electricity and the
most important exporter in the whole region due to the
Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant with a total capacity of 3,760
MW. A second plant, the Belene Nuclear Power Plant with a
capacity of 2,000 MW is under construction. There is a $1.4
billion (£718 million) project for construction of an
additional 670 MW for the 500 MW Maritza Iztok 1 TPP.

In production of steel and steel products per capita the
country is first in the Balkans. Ferrous metallurgy is very
important.

Property Market

The property market has been boosted recently by foreigners
seeking additional homes. These buyers come from right
across Europe but the largest numbers are British,
encouraged by comparatively cheap property and because the
country is more accessible through low cost air travel. The
future for this particular country is bright indeed.

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