Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2024 All Rights Reserved

IMF approves Bulgaria's higher spending due to pandemic

Photo: EPA/BGNES

The International Monetary Fund has approved higher spending by the Bulgarian government in response to the Covid-19 crisis, BNR reports. At the end of its regular mission, the IMF experts also noted that the transparency of extraordinary expenses could be improved by publishing a subsequent evaluation of anti-crisis policies and the funds spent on them.
According to the current IMF forecasts, the Bulgarian economy will shrink more than the expected 4% according to the report on the World Economic Outlook from October 2020.
Unemployment is expected to rise, but, thanks to support with various measures, it will not be very sharp. According to the fund, there will be an increase in non-performing loans in Bulgaria, whose level before the crisis was higher than the European average.
Income inequality is still a very serious problem for the country, the IMF said. According to the fund, the higher spending in the social sphere for 2021 may be beneficial, but a comprehensive reform in the social sphere is needed. More funds need to be invested in education, the IMF said.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Evtim Miloshev

A record summer season but also arising problems, tourism industry says

The 2024 summer season has meant more in every respect – more revenues, tourists, sunny days, even more than the record-high  results of 2019, caretaker Minister of Tourism Evtim Miloshev said in an interview with bTV. But there are more problems as..

published on 9/30/24 8:43 AM

Writers and choreographers from five countries to participate in the Leap Off Page festival in Ruse

Writers and choreographers from Bulgaria, Venezuela, Lithuania, Turkiye and France will participate in the third edition of the international interdisciplinary festival Leap Off Page, which takes place from today until October 6 in Ruse, the..

published on 9/30/24 7:50 AM

Sofia DocuMental International Film Festival invites us to step out of the bubble

“Step Out of the Bubble” is the motto of Sofia DocuMental—the first international festival for creative non-fiction film with a focus on human rights. The festival will officially open today in Sofia and will continue until October 6. The..

published on 9/30/24 6:05 AM