Bulgaria supports the view that the EU budget policy should be based on results, Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Pekanov said at the 7th Sofia Economic Forum in the Bulgarian capital on Monday. Noting that the discussions on the next multiannual EU budget are difficult, Pekanov drew attention to the cohesion policy, saying that Bulgaria has been one of its largest beneficiaries over the last 20 years. He noted that the cohesion policy has been working well.

For a long time, cohesion funds have been used for infrastructure, healthcare, social policy, education and other important areas, enabling regions with less capacity to catch up, Pekanov said. He added that in 2021, the European Commission decided to introduce a change with its new NextGenerationEU fund. Pekanov described this as a useful move. “The funding is no longer intended solely for infrastructure and major projects, but also for setting clear objectives,” he emphasized.

In his view, Europe is not doing enough in the field of artificial intelligence and needs to invest much more, and much faster, than it has committed to so far. “We need to encourage and require businesses to use artificial intelligence more than they currently do,” he said, adding that the technology should be used in everyday processes.

The Sofia Economic Forum, organized by the Delphi Economic Forum since 2018, serves as an international platform for political, corporate, and intellectual leaders to help shape the future of Bulgaria and Southeast Europe.