Bulgaria - Articoli

Bulgaria: railway network renewed with cohesion funds

01/02/2024 -  Maura Madeddu

Thanks to EU cohesion funds, Bulgaria is activating and completing numerous projects to renew its railway network. However, the shadow of corruption looms over the works and the possibility that, in the past, part of the funds may have been used improperly


Ivo Danchev: photography between roots and dreams

11/12/2023 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

Between the desire to document and the need to dream - this suspended territory is the realm of Ivo Danchev, one of the most talented Bulgarian photographers, who for some years has dedicated himself body and soul to documenting the tradition of the "kukeri". An interview


Austria and the Balkans, between interests and populism

23/11/2023 -  Francesco Martino Valona

Austria remains one of the EU countries most sincerely interested in enlargement to the Western Balkans, but its policy towards the region suffers from populism and a lack of vision. We talked about it with Adelheid Wölfl, historical correspondent from the region for the newspaper Der Standard


Energy transition: EU funds for renewables increase

04/09/2023 -  Ornaldo Gjergji

For the 2014-2020 programming period, the European Union allocated around 5.9 billion Euros under its cohesion policy to implement renewable energy projects. An overview of the data


SLAPP in Bulgaria, record claim against Mediapool

21/03/2023 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

A record claim for compensation against Bulgarian online newspaper Mediapool, "guilty" of bringing the problems of the insurance sector to public attention. A trial brings the SLAPP issue back under the spotlight in Bulgaria, between fears and professional solidarity


Bulgaria and discrimination: there is progress, but the road is still a long one

06/12/2022 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

A recent report by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) takes stock of the fight against discrimination in Bulgaria. Progress has been registered in recent years, but many problems remain unresolved


Bulgaria: Borisov wins elections, but forming a government remains a puzzle

03/10/2022 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

In the early elections on Sunday 2 October in Bulgaria, GERB, the party of former Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, is back as the leading political force in the country with 25% of the votes. However, the difficulties remain and it is not certain that parliament will be able to express a solid majority


Serbia and Bulgaria: across the border, against postural disorders

15/06/2022 -  Alice Facchini

Back muscle dysfunctions and imbalances are on the rise in our society. Serbia and Bulgaria have decided to address the issue, starting with children and young people, thanks to a cross-border project


Bulgaria: the media, law, and freedom of information

16/05/2022 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

In Bulgaria, media freedom has traditionally been restricted by grey areas, and journalists often come under severe pressure. This interview with Nelly Ognyanova, a leading Bulgarian expert on media law, discusses the legislative factors that define the working framework of journalism in the country


Science and work: how to relaunch Gabrovo, the "Bulgarian Manchester"

14/04/2022 -  Francesco Martino Gabrovo

Gabrovo, in central Bulgaria, used to be one of the country's main industrial centres: to relaunch it, the city university has launched a Centre of Competence, to reconnect the academia and the business world and foster research and training


Bulgaria, if war is near

10/03/2022 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

Putin's war in Ukraine has strong repercussions on Bulgaria: the government has strongly condemned the aggression, but the country, traditionally linked to Russia, is divided both from a political and a symbolic point of view. Meanwhile, 30,000 refugees are already on their way


North Macedonia: new premier, new European perspectives?

26/01/2022 -  Aleksandar Samardjiev Tetovo

The local elections of last October changed the political landscape in North Macedonia, and in January Social Democrat Dimitar Kovacevski became the new Prime Minister. The declared goal of the new government is to overcome Bulgaria's veto and start EU accession negotiations


EU cohesion: the great erasure of gender equality

11/01/2022 -  Gentiola Madhi

The pandemic has accentuated the gender inequalities existing in the EU member states. Things were never great, but an analysis of the last financial period 2014-2020 of cohesion policies highlights how little has been done in this field


Greek investments in Bulgaria: what will happen after Covid-19?

20/01/2022 -  Nicola Zordan

A seminar discussed regional relations in Europe during the pandemic, with Greece-Bulgaria relations among the case studies. But local-scale data would be needed to fully understand the situation, said Nicolas Rossignol of the ESPON programme, and there are few available


Bulgaria, the consequences of the pandemic on young students

16/12/2021 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

Bulgaria has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic, especially at the expense of young students. The disparities have been particularly apparent in the more fragile communities, such as the Roma and Turkish ones


Bulgaria, lagging behind in disabled people’s rights

02/12/2021 -  Juan Torregrosa Rodriguez

Despite European funding and new measures undertaken by the Sofia authorities, Bulgaria lags behind in safeguarding the rights of people with disabilities who continue to experience high levels of poverty and social marginalization


Bulgaria, the state sentenced to compensate Turkish journalist

05/08/2021 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

The European Court of Human Rights condemned Bulgaria for the 2016 extradition of a Turkish journalist, hastily handed over to the Turkish authorities who accused him of being part of the Fehtullah Gülen movement, in violation of national and international rules


Bulgaria, dismantling the "Borisov system"

09/06/2021 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

Bulgaria is approaching new early elections – scheduled for 11 July – amidst scandals and twists, such as the sanctions imposed on six Bulgarian citizens by the US Treasury Department. An uncertain scenario, but one that suggests the political decline of ex-premier Boyko Borisov


From Brazil to Bulgaria: the giants we ignore at our peril

09/02/2021 -  Marco Ranocchiari

Tailing ponds are among the largest and most dangerous structures engineered by humanity, but their operation is virtually unknown to those who don’t live in their vicinity. Europe is no less at risk from incidents than the rest of the world


"One Coin", story of the cryptocurrency that deceived the world

29/12/2020 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

Bulgarian entrepreneur Ruja Ignatova wanted to "bury BitCoin" and created a new cryptocurrency that was to change the world: "OneCoin". Behind her sparkling dream, however, there was a scam for four billion dollars, which disappeared along with Ignatova herself


Emissions in Europe: how much CO2 does energy cost us?

15/01/2021 -  Ornaldo Gjergji

In terms of CO2, energy production is the human activity with the worst impact on the environment in Europe. Emissions in the EU may be falling, but there are still major obstacles to achieving climate neutrality. Meanwhile, to the east, dozens of new coal plants will be built in the near future.


Bulgaria, chronicle of a lockdown foretold

09/12/2020 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

After a relatively calm first phase, Bulgaria is now facing a surge in COVID-19 cases, to such an extent that the country now tops both the European and global rankings for covid-related deaths. After controversies and indecision, the government is now set to introduce new measures


Bulgaria – North Macedonia, a short-sighted veto on the road to the EU

25/11/2020 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

With the veto on the opening of negotiations for North Macedonia's accession to the EU, the Bulgarian government plays the nationalist card, above all for contingent reasons of domestic politics. The consequences, however, are likely to be heavy in the medium and long term


Habitats, species, ecosystems: the state of nature in south-east Europe

10/12/2020 -  Pietro Stefani

The latest report from the European Environment Agency (EEA) paints a grave picture of the EU’s environmental situation, which requires urgent attention from member states if current trends are to be reversed. A look at south-east Europe


Protests in Bulgaria, the voices from the square

03/08/2020 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

Protests against the Borisov government have been going on for over 20 days in Bulgaria. Our correspondent was at the heart of the demonstrations – in the centre of capital Sofia – to collect the live voices of the protest


Bulgaria, if coronavirus tests freedom of expression

25/03/2020 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

Fines and prison for spreading "false news" about coronavirus, police access to sensitive phone and web traffic data: some norms of the COVID-19 "emergency package" by the Bulgarian government have stirred a debate on freedom and rights in the pandemic


Bulgaria, waiting for the coronavirus "stress test"

11/03/2020 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

The Borisov government reacts mildly as the first cases are being reported in Bulgaria. Strong concerns about the Bulgarian healthcare system's ability to withstand the impact of Covid-19, especially if the situation deteriorates quickly


Balkan route: fragile calmness on the Bulgarian front

06/03/2020 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

Good relations with Turkey and especially with president Erdoğan, at all costs: this is how prime minister Boyko Borisov has managed to protect Bulgaria from the new migration crisis. However, this strategy may be based on fragile foundations


How many Bulgarians live in Europe?

09/10/2019 -  Yoanna IvanovaZornitsa StoilovaAnina Santova

Bulgaria is experiencing massive flows of emigration. Yet, not everyone goes away for the same reason, or moves to another EU country with the same life plans


Bulgaria, radio silence

20/09/2019 -  Francesco Martino Sofia

Bulgaria confirms its structural problems in the field of press freedom. This time, the scandal is the attempted removal from the public radio (BNR) of an inconvenient journalist, followed by a mysterious obscuring of the repeaters