One of the things Bulgarian businesses never seem to tire of harping on is the public administration and the laws in the country – recriminations are flying, with each side blaming the other for every possible problem and setback in the economy; it would appear a wall had been raised between the two with bombs and bullets constantly flying over it.

That there are a great many disgruntled people in the country is something that is corroborated by the WIN/Gallup International End of Year Survey of happiness in the world where Bulgarians are very close to bottom of the list. Still, things are not as black as businesses say, nor are they as wonderful as the government would like us to believe. Suffice it to say that the Doing Business annual World Bank report places Bulgaria in the prestigious 38th position in the world. The country is in the top 50 out of some 200 countries – this means that business conditions in Bulgaria are on the whole good, or at least better than in most parts of the world.

Yet it seems businesses in the country don’t give much credence to world reports, so they compiled their own. The latest annual report of one of the biggest employer organizations in the country – the Bulgarian Industrial Association – was released at the end of last year. The report clearly states that the situation in the country during the year was difficult, that many and mostly bad things had befallen businesses.

“The business climate has not improved and there is no sign of a serious improvement compared to 2014,” says the Association’s Executive President Bojidar Danev. And this, even though in 2015 the businessmen included in the survey say there was an increase in sales, in turnover and production. Even though Finance Ministry official data on the evolution of the principal macroeconomic indexes indicate a fair GDP growth of around 3 percent, a drop in unemployment, more foreign investments etc.

Against the backdrop of the all but disastrous economic picture the previous year, practically 100 percent of all businesses concur with the official government forecasts of economic growth this year – a fact showing that there are times when businesses have been criticizing the economic, political and social conditions without sufficient reason. This concord would simply not be possible if all complaints businesses have were a truthful description of the state of affairs or a true reflection of official policy. One case in point - executives are expecting a growth rate of 2.9 percent which actually coincides with the World Bank’s forecasts of Bulgaria’s GDP growth in 2016. In fact, the figure is higher than the government is expecting – no more than 2.1 percent. Paradoxical as it may seem, the otherwise critically-minded and traditionally sceptical businesses are actually predicting better results than the government. Obviously, there is a reason for this and one such reason is connected with the political stability in the country. Having been given a slight jolt at the end of last year, it now shows no sign of cracking in the foreseeable future and that is something that sets executives’ minds at rest – what they value most is political and social stability. It is quite another matter that unlike the situation inside Bulgaria, which gives no reason for apprehensions, things in the immediate proximity of the country are extremely volatile and could very well put a spoke in the wheels of any investment, expansion or new market plans and projects.

English version: Milena Daynova