Bulgaria's progress on the path to the OECD was discussed at a forum organised by TI-Bulgaria and Ministry of Economy and Industry.
"Investing in integrity creates much more value than spending money on bribes.” with these words, François Valerian, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Transparency International, opened the forum “Sustainable Development and Business Integrity”, organized in Sofia by the Ministry of Economy and Industry and TI-Bulgaria. “Today, investors highly value companies that invest money and efforts in integrity. These investments bring better revenues and reduce costs,” explained François Valerian. He was categorical that countries and governments also benefit when they invest in integrity – from reducing sanctions, from attracting investors, from a higher rating.
Bulgaria's progress in the process of joining the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) was among the main highlights of the forum.
Bulgaria's accession to the OECD is a national priority that is not affected by political dynamics. The Ministry of Economy and Industry is among the most engaged institutions in this process. This was stated by Deputy Minister of Economy and Industry Nikolay Pavlov during the opening of the forum. He emphasized the importance of Bulgaria's decision to join the OECD: "This is a decision for the future, but also an important decision for the present, because the reforms that we need to make, in addition to membership, will also provide us with a more competitive economy."
What are the international standards for business integrity and what are the good practices in the context of the global framework of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the European regulatory framework for sustainability reporting was the topic of the first panel of the program.
The second panel discussion focused on the importance of new requirements and regulations for a sustainable investment and financial climate. It brought together national and international experts, representatives of business, the financial sector and the academic community.
This is about specific European regulations that are transformed into Bulgarian laws," explained Kalin Slavov, Executive Director of Transparency International - Bulgaria
According to him the rules have quite pragmatic dimensions and relate not only to our membership in OECD, but also to Recovery and Resilience Plan and to our Agreement with European Commission for the current financial period.
If these criteria are not met, Bulgarian business will lose competitive advantages and will be excluded from the possibility of partnerships with foreign companies that will meet the requirements. Moreover, if the accepted criteria are not met and the legal norms are not met, the banking sector will not provide financing, Slavov warned. The introduction of integrity pacts must be done with joint efforts: of business, the government and the public sector, he is categorical.
“Our future doesn’t start tomorrow, it has already arrived and we haven’t realized it,” said the executive director of Transparency International - Bulgaria
