One in four children in Bulgaria is left behind by parents who move abroad for work. These alarming figures were announced by Bulgarian MEP Petar Vitanov of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats at a conference in Brussels on the social aspects of intra-EU mobility on children left behind.

Vitanov pointed out that the unemployment rate in Bulgaria is currently only around 5%, but low wages are driving many Bulgarian families to seek employment in Western Europe. "Children living without their parents are more vulnerable and can easily be involved in various forms of exploitation and become victims of violence," the MEP stressed.