10 billion EUR Tourism Revenue Expected in Bulgaria

SofiaEcho, 26 Feb 2007

Tourism could bring Bulgaria’s budget eight to 10 billion euro per year, Bulgarian Hotel and Restaurant Association chairman Blagoy Ragin said.

The country earned the record breaking amount of nearly a billion euro from tourism in 2006, he said as quoted by Focus news agency.

Bulgaria had to resolve two major problems in the tourism sector, he said. These are bad infrastructure and lack of qualified staff, needed to increase income from tourism.

Hotels and restaurants meeting international requirements were built in Bulgaria, but the lack of good roads is a great stumbling-block, Ragin said.

Bulgaria’s qualified staff preferred to work abroad where it could earn more, according to Ragin. Local hotel and restaurant owners were incapable to pay high salaries.

The situation will improve if Bulgaria managed to attract strategic investors. The tourism sector could also make use of EU’s structural funds for human resource development, competitiveness and regional development.