Minister Ilin Dimitrov: We are changing the way the state works to support tourism

The Minister for Tourism, Dr Ilin Dimitrov, outlined the key reforms the ministry is working on to develop the sector during a meeting at the Golden Sands resort with Prime Minister Rumen Radev and senior management from the TUI Group.

"We are making changes that have been delayed for too long. It is now clear that tourism is a key sector for our economy, and we are working to attract more investment, strengthen marketing, improve connectivity and raise the quality of our tourism offering,” Minister Dimitrov said.

Prime Minister Rumen Radev emphasized the importance of tourism both for the economy and investment, as well as for the country's international image, highlighting diversity as one of Bulgaria's strongest advantages. "We have the sea, mountains, ski resorts, rural, cultural, religious and culinary tourism and many more opportunities. All of this can be found in Bulgaria," the Prime Minister said.

TUI Group CEO Sebastian Ebel pointed out that Bulgaria has a competitive tourism offering and real potential for growth if it is combined with strong connectivity and active marketing. "What I saw here is impressive. Bulgaria has excellent tourism and it's up to us to work together so that more people in Europe learn about it," Ebel said.

According to Minister Dimitrov, the state will seek a direct approach to business and investors so that good projects pass through the institutions more quickly and predictably. In parallel, work will be done on changes to the regulatory framework that would give municipalities more opportunities to develop and advertise their own tourist destinations.

As an example of the new working model, the minister cited the partnership with TUI. A day earlier, the Ministry of Tourism signed a long-term memorandum with Europe’s largest tour operator, with the aim of increasing the number of tourists travelling to Bulgaria via TUI to 400,000 per year by 2030. “We want to double the number of tourists by focusing our efforts on the quality of what we offer,” the minister added.

The next steps are the more active use of major international events to promote Bulgaria and the creation of an international association of universities that train tourism professionals. The goal is for business, the state and education to join forces to improve quality in the sector.