Bulgarian industry and sectors with high added value need political representation that will work for them. They need recognition and public attention because they have more complex problems than other sectors. This became clear from the words of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Innovation and Growth Tomislav Donchev. He opened an economic forum organized by the Association for Innovation, Business Services and Technology (AIBEST). The event brought together leaders from the technology industry and businesses with high added value, international experts, etc. in Sofia.
Donchev emphasized that often the focus is only on measures, instruments, public funding through grant schemes, and attention is not paid to larger topics such as the public and political environment for these economic sectors. They need a positive and stimulating environment.
“In the mainstream, you can see dozens of hours of commentary about problems, for example, in agriculture, tourism or insurance companies. And how often do we talk about traditional, creative industries?“, asked the Deputy Prime Minister.
“How can you become a mountaineer if you don't know that there are mountains in Bulgaria? Who wants to become an engineer if they don't know that there is a place to work. Who studies to be a skilled worker if they don't know that there is a production that, in the mass case, would give them a higher salary than that of a teacher and a police officer. "In the past 5 years, I have seen production footage on television twice," the minister also said.
He stated to those present that within 2 weeks, the laboratory equipment available in the Centers of Excellence and the Centers of Competence, in which millions have been invested, will be available not only to universities, but also to businesses. "So that every entrepreneur, industrialist can know where he is and can use it," he explained.
Donchev also added that, together with the Ministry of Finance, work is being done to introduce tax incentives for research and development expenses. “We are one of the three member states that do not yet offer such incentives“, he specified.
During the conference, other hot topics for business were also discussed, such as the rise of artificial intelligence, the necessary transformation in the subsectors of the industry, key opportunities for increasing competitiveness, the development of digitalization in Bulgaria, etc.