Focus...On North East Bulgaria

  Area and geography: an area of 19,966.6 sq. km (18.0% of the national territory). The Northeastern Region is situated in the northeastern part of Bulgaria. It ranks on the third place in terms of territorial scope and population size among the six planning regions in the Republic of Bulgaria. It comprises six administrative districts – Varna, Dobrich, Razgrad, Silistra, Targovishte, and Shumen. The main regional centres are Varna, followed by Dobrich and Shumen. To the north the region borders on Romania. The connection across the river Danube is effected via the Silistra-Kalarach ferry line. The surface connections are via one railway and three road passes at the border-crossing points Kardam, Yovkovo, Silistra, and Durankulak. To the east the region is broadly opened to the Black Sea via the ports of Varna, Devnya, Balchik, and the ferry complex at Beloslav. The area of the Northeastern Region is traversed by three Pan-European transport corridors. Via the port complex it connects the country to Asia and the Black Sea region.

   Climate: Mild seaside climate. While the North-East region's climate is mainly influenced by the moderate continental belt, the climate in the region's eastern parts is mainly determined by the impact of the Black Sea. The low annual precipitation here, below 500 mm, has led to artificial irrigation of agricultural areas. The average annual temperature is around 11- 12 C, being higher along the Black Sea coast and in the areas close to the Danube River.

   History: The North-East is a region with a long history. The remnants of the necropolis at Varna confirm that this territory was at one time inhabited by one of the most ancient civilisations in the world. Between the 5th and 4th centuries B.C. the Hellenistic civilisation founded many settlements along the Black Sea coast, such as Odesos (today Varna) and Kronos (today Balchik). In 681 the first Bulgarian State was established here. The remains of its first capital, Pliska, and the second one, Veliki Preslav, reveal the richness of cultural life at the dawn of the Bulgarian state. Veliki Preslav was the nations's spiritual and cultural centre. The monasteries, churches, and buildings from that time reveal the extent to which large scale building and construction took place.

   Population: The population size of the region is 1,290,025 people or 16.48% of the total population. For the period between the last two population censuses (1992-2001) the average annual population growth was –0.68%, i.e. below the national average. The population in the region is characterized generally by a high educational level. However, an unfavorable trend of growing rate of early school-leavers and emigration of the highly-educated population from the districts, with the exception of Varna, has been observed. The share of inhabitants with university education in the Northeastern Region is 7.62%. Bulgarian ethnos predominates in the region as a whole (69.2% of the total population). The population of the Turkish ethnic group represents 22.8% of the total and the Roma population accounts for 5.8%.

   Employment rate: At 48.4%, the activity rate in the region is equal to the national average (in 2002). Some 14.4% of the country's labour force is resident in this region. Overall, the region’s main indicators are close to average. The employment rate demonstrates a trend towards permanent slight increase for the region as a whole for the period after 2000. But generally it is lower than the national average (40.2% in 2003). The highest employment rate has been recorded for Varna District (46%), which is above the national average (42.4%) and above the regional average. The values for the employment rate of all the other districts are below the national and the regional average.

   Unemployment rate: The unemployment rate, 22.7% in 2002, is higher than the national average of 16.8%. It has followed the national tendency to increase since 1995, as during the transition period many workers were laid off from the industrial sector. The decrease in employment in market services also contributes to this negative trend. The long-term unemployment rate has also followed a downward trend since 1995, reaching 49.8% in 1998. Although this figure is the lowest among the regions, its high level reveals the lack of job opportunities both in the region and in Bulgaria as a whole.

   Distribution of employment: Agriculture plays an important role in terms of the employment structure, employing 33% of the labour force (in 2000) against 26% nationally. Furthermore, the number of employees in agriculture is substantially greater than that in industry. A peculiarity of the employment structure here and in the neighbouring South-East region is the low level of employment in industry. There is a high employment rate in market services, mainly due to the strong tourist sector along the Black Sea coast. The number of those employed in the enterprises from the non-financial sector is 15.4% of the national total.

   Industry: Industry in the Northeastern Region is a mixture of big and small companies, operating on a broad (diversified) base. Foodstuffs production, beverages, tobacco products, chemicals, and fibre are of predominant importance. Machine-tools engineering, including vehicles manufacture, textile and clothing industries, and the construction sector are other important directions in the development of the region. The industrial sector as a whole is characterized by a high degree of concentration in the district centers and in the Varna-Devnya-Beloslav industrial agglomeration.

   GDP: The region ranks second in terms of contribution to the national GDP. During the period 1999-2003 the rates of growth of the regional GDP were close to the national average. Above all, the region’s contribution to the national GDP is a relatively constant value (between 14 and 15%).

   Development of the regional economy: A strongly developed agricultural sector is the region's major advantage. In particular, the crop production flourishes due to the favourable climate and the region's vast plains. Gross value added (GVA) from the region's agricultural sector to the national economy is second highest after the South-Central region (in 2002, it was equal to 21.8% of national GVA of the agricultural sector). Overall, the output from crop production has turned the region into the country's breadbasket. Black soil in Ludogorie and the Dobrudja plain is the most fertile soil in the region, as large quantities of crops are grown here. In addition, the region has the largest share of arable land amongst the six regions, accounting for 51.1% of its total area in 2002.

   Infrastructure and urban development: The region's geographic location is one of the major assets, reflecting its good transport links and the opportunities it offers for future economic growth. With access to both the Danube River and the Black Sea, this should strengthen the region's role as a geopolitical centre connecting the country with central Asia and with countries in the Black Sea region. Furthermore, parts of the 7th European traffic corridor cross the region along the Danube River, which is an important link to North-eastern Europe. The advantages of the Northeastern Region are clearly evident at the background of the prospects for an ever more intensive use of water transport as a more energy-efficient and especially environmentally-friendly transport mode. The Northeastern Region also has a well-established road network. The relative share of highways and Class A roads accounts for 20% of the national total. The best values for the indicators related to development of the communications system are those of Varna and Dobrich districts. The region has limited water resources. The rivers in Ludogorie and Dobrudja, used for household water supply, frequently dry up in the summer. That is why the Fishek, Ticha, and Konevo artificial lakes, built on the Kamchia River, are very important for the water supply in the region. The shortage of water is also compensated for by underground water deposits. The mineral water, pumped at the thermal springs at Provadia and Devnya, is also an important natural resource.

   Environment: One of the region's major drawbacks is the substantial environmental damage that has been caused. The situation in the region of Varna is of particular concern due to the concentration of chemical enterprises here. The active tourist season also has a negative impact on ecological conditions. However, a tangible reduction of harmful emission in the atmospheric air has been observed in recent years. This is due mainly to the reduced production activities and as a result of the undertaken actions for mitigating pollution.

   Protected territories and landmarks: The archeological relics, such as the Thracian tomb at Sveshtari (in the region of Targovishte), the Madara horseman (Shumen), and the necropolis in Varna are UNESCO world heritage sites. On the territory of the region are situated still operating churches of the 17th – 18th century with unique murals. The cultural and historical heritage of the region possesses good opportunities for socialization and active incorporation in the modern life of the population. One of these opportunities is connected with the intensive development of tourism in the region. Especially advantageous are the resorts situated on the Black Sea.

The region ranks on the second place in the country in terms of volume of accumulated direct foreign investments (12.8%). This volume demonstrates significant increase during the recent several years. The predominant share of direct foreign investments (above 65%) has been effected on the area of Varna District. The rest of the districts lag significantly behind. The absence of key investments (although such investments are beginning to emerge and Targovishte Municipality is one example to that effect) is an important challenge in the development of the region.

Uncles Comment: Unemployment figures are set to hit 65% in this region this month.This reflects not just the world recession but also the totally seasonal nature of employment on the coast.The tourist trade takes the lions share of the economy here and November till April are bleak months employment wise.