Over 20% of funds intended for public procurement in Bulgaria go for kickbacks ALL - 2007/4/23
Between 20 and 25 percent of the funds that were officially invested for public procurements actually went for bribing, said John Beyrle, US Ambassador in Sofia.

This fact averts the foreign investors and the cost of corruptive practices goes on the back of the Bulgaria's citizens, the Ambassador said.

Speaking at a gathering in Sofia, Beyrle underlined that the corruption is particularly common in public procurements in healthcare and education sectors, where about 450 million euros are considered as lost in the grey sector, which matches the total budgetary funds of the respective ministries.

Nevertheless, Beyrle pointed out that for the first time ever, the report registers lower corruption in the public administration. Citizens' recognition of the corruption as the main challenge of the country is another positive trend marked for the first time.

US Ambassador Beyrle gave an address at a presentation of a report drafted by the Sofia-based NGO Center for Democracy Studies.

Author: Makfax

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