Vice President Iotova: Bulgaria should not slow down the pace of joining the euro zone

One of the main strategic tasks for the country remains the adoption of the euro, said Vice President Iliana Iotova, who on June 17 opened a forum dedicated to the country's future accession to the euro area.

"Bulgaria should not slow down its pace of joining the euro area. Bulgaria should participate very actively in the changes that are expected in the eurozone itself, as it is obvious that there are not one or two problems there either. Ever since the 2008 crisis, the indicators have not been good. We do not want to enter a union that is loaded and burdened with problems, and I therefore believe that a country that is yet to enter it should also make its voice heard. Almost all the criteria have been met, so we are looking for a stable government to complete this process. Without Schengen and eurozone membership, our membership in the European Union is incomplete," the Vice President explained.

Iotova added that it is also necessary to stop politicking on the topic so that people's fears can be reduced.

"No less important is how we convince our citizens of the benefits of adopting the euro. How do we explain that we are not depriving ourselves of sovereignty by replacing the lev (BGN) with the euro, one of the most common theses, how do we convince people with the lowest incomes that the eurozone will not “eat” these lowest incomes. How do we overcome fears of a sharp rise in inflation - in the long term, analyses show that the effect is 0.1 to 0.3%. How do we convince citizens that the state has the necessary mechanisms to prevent speculation?" the Vice President asked rhetorically.

Consumer protection remains one of the most important tasks for the government, explained the caretaker Minister of Economy, Petko Nikolov:

"One month after we get a date to adopt the euro, all prices in shops must be in both currencies. The dual labelling will end a year after the changeover to the single European currency. An important task of the state is to prevent consumers from being misled. The Consumer Protection Commission, which is a body under the Ministry of Economy and Industry, will ensure that traders comply with their obligation and that both prices are correctly displayed."

He said the country was on track to meet the final criteria for adopting the euro, namely that inflation should not be 0.5 percentage points higher than the three best-performing countries.

"There is no doubt that joining the European currency is one of the country's main priorities, along with full Schengen and OECD membership," Nikolov added.

Once again, the caretaker minister reminded that a serious awareness campaign was needed to convince people that joining the eurozone would bring more benefits than harm.

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Bulgaria is expected by the end of this year to meet the inflation target and to request an extraordinary convergence report so as to get a date for adopting the single currency by mid-2025. The new Parliament is also due to adopt the euro law, which will enter into force when the country has a secure date for accession.