Payments under the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) have doubled in recent months, Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Donchev has announced. He added that he was optimistic about receiving the delayed tranches and the remaining funds under the RRP. According to the Deputy Prime Minister, there is a high probability that the second and third tranches will be received this year.

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"The big challenge is that within the first half of 2026, Bulgaria will need to disburse six payments," emphasized Tomislav Donchev. He also outlined the difficulty of implementing the investments within the limited timeframe, with a deadline of next summer.

As far as pension reform is concerned, the Deputy Prime Minister believes that a broad public debate is needed. According to him, the retirement age and pension contributions should not be increased. He added that the pension system has been in deficit for decades and that a large part of pensions is co-financed by the state budget.