Women in Innovation: Bulgaria and the Path to a Positive Balance

Bulgaria is sending positive signals to Europe regarding the representation of women in leadership positions in science and entrepreneurship, but the country still has a long way to go to achieve full gender balance. This became clear from a statement by Ekaterina Zaharieva, European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation, at a round table held today on the topic "Women in Innovation" in the Planet Schwarz Tech Theater space. The forum is organized by the association "Ladies Forum", and Commissioner Zaharieva is a special participant in the event.

The atmosphere in the hall is lively, and those present are following the speakers with interest. The spotlights illuminate the podium, where the Commissioner presents current data and trends.

Compared to the overall indicator for the European Union, which reports only nine percent female innovators, Bulgaria demonstrates better results. The data shows 13 percent female innovators in our country, which puts the country in sixth place compared to the average European level.

"But 13 percent is not enough", emphasized Commissioner Zaharieva. She added that to achieve a real gender balance, we should strive for a ratio of 40 percent.

Bulgaria is also performing well in terms of the representation of women in academia, recording higher indicators than the average for the European Union. According to the data provided, female professors in the country exceed 50 percent.

"Female doctors are 48 percent and here it is not a matter of lack of talent, but when you look at the higher academic positions, things are not balanced. Only 22 percent are women at the head of universities. Bulgaria is also doing better here, as the data for professors shows that over 50 percent are women", said Commissioner Zaharieva.

These data allow us to conclude that Bulgaria is sending positive messages to Europe regarding the representation of women in leadership positions.

However, the problematic area at the European level remains – attracting capital from female entrepreneurs.

"The statistics on how women attract capital are even worse. About 2 percent of venture capital is attracted by women, only 15 percent of venture capital funds have women", noted the Commissioner.

One of the main goals of the European Commission's policy is to achieve gender balance. Commissioner Zaharieva gave the example of the research and innovation program "Horizon", for which she is responsible. In this program, gender equality is embedded as a key criterion in the evaluation and selection of projects and companies for funding. To achieve this goal, balanced participation in the boards of companies and in the projects themselves is required. Zaharieva also highlighted other measures, such as training programs for women, special awards for female innovators, as well as programs to encourage girls in the field of ICT, engineering and mathematical sciences.

In addition to these policies and measures, Commissioner Zaharieva also emphasized the importance of combating prejudice as a key factor in achieving a positive gender balance.

"There is a positive change, but it is not what it should be. If you compare the data from the previous program period with this one – the trend is positive, but it is not what it should be", clarified the Commissioner.

According to her, in the ruthless race for leadership in the field of technology and the economy, European countries cannot afford to lose 50 percent of their population and their talent.