The Ministry of Regional Development promotes the sustainable development of the Bulgarian regions.

The Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Ivan Ivanov pointed out that in the current global situation, the challenges for the Bulgarian regions are multi-layered - climate change, socio-economic inequalities, urbanization and demographic imbalances. Under these conditions, the sustainable development of the regions is not just a strategic goal, but a necessity. Minister Ivanov stated that the task is to ensure growth that does not deplete natural resources, reduces the carbon footprint and at the same time creates quality of life and opportunities for everyone in the big cities.

The Minister participated in the GREEN TRANSITION 5.0 forum, where he joined a discussion on the topic "Sustainable development of the regions. Carbon-neutral and smart cities: From vision to neutrality." He pointed out that sustainability is at the center of regional development policies, aimed at integrating environmental, economic and social aspects.

Through the EU instruments, the Cohesion Policy and the Just Transition Mechanism, the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works supports projects that promote energy efficiency, green infrastructure, innovation and digitalization. Minister Ivanov pointed out that during the programming period 2021-2027, the "Regional Development Program (RDP)" has a budget of 6.5 billion BGN from the European Regional Development Fund and the Just Transition Fund.

A key moment in the new territorial approach of the RDP is that the projects are identified "bottom-up", which encourages intersectoral and inter-institutional dialogue and coordination, with the initiative for their implementation coming from the local stakeholders.

The Minister emphasized that the MRDPW has taken concrete measures in recent months to accelerate the implementation of energy efficiency projects in the residential sector under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) in active communication with the municipalities, to ensure the timely start and activities for maximum absorption of funds within the prescribed deadlines. The Ministry has finalized the process of concluding grant agreements under the procedure "Support for sustainable energy renovation of multi-family residential buildings, including addressing energy poverty" under the RDP 2021-2027.

Minister Ivanov pointed out that the MRDPW envisages specific measures and financial mechanisms to accelerate the implementation of energy efficiency programs for multi-family and single-family residential buildings within the RDP 2021-2027.