The mayor of Sofia, Vasil Terziev, and the deputy mayor, Ivan Vasilev, met with the employers' organizations in Bulgaria.
Vasil Terziev stated that both he and his team strive to ensure that there is no favoritism for any company in any field. "Our goal is the same framework for everyone. If the rules are bad, you can help us fix them. Bad practices must drop. If we are good businessmen, we will write better contracts. And accordingly, the business will work better," added Terziev.
"Our goal is to discuss and agree on the longer-term vision for the development of the city. To have a constructive dialogue about what we are planning, and for you to tell us what we miss and where we go wrong. We are open to any ideas that will make life in Sofia better. As well as for any partnerships that will lead to a better result for the people of Sofia" - said Ivan Vassilev, Deputy Mayor for "Finance and Health Care".
The meeting was attended by the Chairman of the Board of KRIB Kiril Domuschiev and the member of the Board of KRIB Zarina Gencheva, the Chairman of the Board of AIKB Vasil Velev and the Executive Director of AIKB Dobrin Ivanov, Atanas Temelkov, Chairman of the CC of SSI, and the member of the Board of SSI Lachezar Gramatikov, Stanislav Popdonchev, Deputy Chairman of the Board of BSK, the Chairman of the Board of the BCCI Tsvetan Simeonov and the chief expert of BCCI Boryana Abadjieva.
"Our goal is for the municipality to become an increasingly better partner and to establish order and peace - both for citizens and businesses. I think that in the first months we showed where we are going - reports, transparency, digitization - we want to raise the level. The same applies to public procurement and urban planning. We want an orderly environment where there is predictability. Let's have a long-term vision of where we are headed, which will facilitate business," said the mayor of Sofia.
The representatives of the employers' associations noted the positive changes in the management of Sofia at the beginning of Terziev's mandate. "You have a desire to be really transparent. It is evident in the way the budget is made and how it is discussed with both organizations and citizens. The cultural heritage initiative is very important. We at KRIB are fully behind this initiative" - said Zarina Gencheva. She added that the security problem of the citizens of Sofia should also receive the necessary attention.
"I spoke with colleagues and the general opinion is that there is no pressure of any kind, that there is no ours and yours. And this is very positive" - stated Kiril Domuschiev. He also touched on the topic of garbage collection and expected changes. "The entry into force of the "polluter pays" principle has been delayed for years, and this harms the municipalities themselves. The same applies to separate collection. This should become a habit for everyone," said the chairman of the KRIB Board of Directors.
Vasil Velev touched on the topic "Heating". "I know it's a complicated matter, but it's something that's important to everyone. If it is not doped up by all of us - companies and citizens, the price of electricity will be 11% lower", he calculated. The Chairman of the Board of Directors of AIKB also commented on the topic of garbage collection. "Sofia has to show that it can happen. If Sofia can change the garbage collection model, any other city can do it," Velev said.
Stanislav Popdonchev explained that, in his opinion, the mayor of Sofia should facilitate access to the administration. However, measures are taken where there are complaints. "Resources should not be wasted. And where something is done well, it should be rewarded" - said the Deputy Chairman of the Board of BSK. According to him, the introduction of the "polluter pays" garbage collection scheme will be a "sweet victory for everyone, because garbage will decrease."
Atanas Temelkov congratulated Vasil Terziev for the reorganization of traffic around the Paradise Mall. "It may be something small, but it is significant. It means thinking," he said. Temelkov added that, in his opinion, the garbage collection schedule should be changed because there is cleaning during the busiest hours, which makes traffic in the city difficult.