European Commission President proposes Iliana Ivanova as Bulgaria's European Commissioner

European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, said on June 28 that she would be proposing Iliana Ivanova to be Bulgaria’s next European Commissioner.

Von der Leyen said, as quoted in a media statement by the European Commission tht she interviewed the candidates put forward by the Bulgarian government for the post of Commissioner, Mr Daniel Lorer and Ms Iliana Ivanova.

Following these interviews, I have decided to propose to the Council and the European Parliament the appointment of Ms Ivanova to the post of Commissioner.

She will be in charge of Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, the statement by EC President reads.

That portfolio was held in the Commission by Mariya Gabriel, who resigned from it to become Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister in the cabinet which was elected in Bulgaria on June 6.

According to von der Leyen, both candidates showed great commitment to the European Union and to the job of Commissioner, but still Iliana Ivanova's experience in the European Court of Auditors and before that as an MEP obviously influenced the choice of the European Commission President.

The full text of the statement by President von der Leyen on the composition of the College and the next European Commissioner from Bulgaria:

"Yesterday I interviewed the candidates put forward by the Bulgarian government for the post of Commissioner, Mr Daniel Lorer and Ms Iliana Ivanova.

Both candidates showed great commitment to the European Union and to the job of Commissioner. They also have relevant experience for this post.

Following these interviews, I have decided to propose to the Council and the European Parliament the appointment of Ms Ivanova to the post of Commissioner.

She will be in charge of Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth.

Ms Ivanova has significant experience on EU matters, having been a member of the European Court of Auditors since 2013. Prior to that, she was a member of the European Parliament, between 2009 and 2012, and a vice chair of the Committee on budgetary control.

Her experience is crucial in carrying forward the implementation of the EU's flagship research programme, Horizon Europe, to enhance the performance of EU's research spending and achieve a better impact on the ground.

I thank Mr Lorer for his application and I wish him well in his future endeavours."

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"It is an honour to have my candidacy for Bulgarian Commissioner confirmed by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. I thank her for trusting me with one of the most important portfolios related to the future of Europe - that of innovation, research, culture, education and youth," Iliana Ivanova wrote in her Facebook profile and thanked for the trust.

Born in Stara Zagora. In 1998 she graduated with a Bachelor's degree in International Economic Relations from the University of Economics in Varna. She has an MBA from the Thunderbird University in Arizona.

She gained diverse expertise while working in US financial and banking institutions. Prior to that, Ivanova worked as an International Financial Institutions Coordinator at the Ministry of Agriculture and Food in Bulgaria.

Ivanova is a former Member of the European Parliament (from 2009 to 2012), Vice-Chair of the Committee on Budgetary Control and Vice-Chair of the Special Committee on the Economic, Financial and Social Crisis, Vice-Chair of the European Parliament Delegation for Relations with China, Member of the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection, and Vice-Member of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs.

Member of the European Court of Auditors since 1 January 2013. On 21 September 2016, she was elected Dean of Audit Staff II, responsible for audits in the areas of structural policies, transport and energy. In September 2018, she was elected for a second term as Dean of Audit Staff II.

She speaks Bulgarian, English, French, German and Russian.