The shortage of qualified labor, corruption and inefficient administration remain the main difficulties faced by companies in Bulgaria. This is according to the fourth business environment survey conducted among members of the French-Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) by the Ipsos polling agency between 31 January and 14 February 2025. These problems were cited by 54%, 33% and 25% of respondents respectively and remain as key obstacles since the previous survey at the end of 2023.
The good news is that, overall, companies say they face fewer difficulties - just 36% compared to 56% in the previous period. Another piece of good news is that uncertain regulatory frameworks, bureaucracy and political instability are being cited less frequently as disadvantages, Ipsos said in presenting the results.
Sixty-six FBCCI member companies participated in the survey. This is the fourth such survey, the previous ones being in 2019, 2020, and 2023. The majority of responding companies (80%) are in the service sector. Small firms predominate (1/3 of respondents), with just over a quarter being medium-sized companies.
A good environment marred by growing pessimism about the economy
Two-thirds of the companies believe that Bulgaria is an attractive investment destination, which maintains the trend from previous surveys. Unsurprisingly, they point to the tax rates for companies and citizens (85% of respondents), EU membership (77%) and low labor costs (44%) as the main advantages. However, it should be noted that in the previous survey labor costs were mentioned by 54% of respondents.
The economic situation in the country is currently described as satisfactory for 42% of respondents, while a fifth find it good. However, there has been an increase in negative respondents, with 30% giving a poor assessment compared to 15% in 2023. Approximately 4 out of 10 companies believe that the situation will remain stable this year.
The workforce
Despite the difficulties in finding people, the overall assessment of the skills of the workforce in Bulgaria is positive. Overall, 85% of respondents found the level to be satisfactory or good, with results comparable to previous surveys. Over half of companies (61%) plan to hire new staff this year, and one-fifth are unsure. An even higher proportion (18%) say they will not expand their teams. The vast majority of firms (62%) will continue to invest in staff training, but 20% will not.
The results are very balanced in terms of companies' plans to invest in buildings and machinery this year. However, the proportion of those who do not intend to invest is still prevalent.
Positive about the euro
Companies remain optimistic about the effects of the introduction of the euro in Bulgaria, with positive attitudes increasing over time. Thus, more than half are very or rather positive, while only a quarter think it will not lead to economic growth. "These are respectively the highest positive and the lowest negative results among the four periods surveyed, i.e. there is a clear trend towards optimism towards euro adoption," Ipsos said.
Overall, companies are satisfied with their investment in the country, with 47% rating it as profitable and 35% saying they have no regrets. However, bureaucracy was cited as an obstacle to doing business by 30% of respondents. Three-quarters of the respondents believe that their projects in Bulgaria have developed as they expected.
Professional development of women in Bulgaria
More than half of women are satisfied with their career path and current job in Bulgaria according to a separate study of the FBCCI, prepared in partnership with the Ipsos agency and the Naos cosmetics group. The sample includes 644 completed surveys and 10 in-depth interviews. The results present a positive trend for women in the workplace, with 59% indicating that they feel supported by their employer in their professional development.
Generation X ladies (over 45 years of age) and those in managerial or expert positions feel the most satisfied with their jobs. They are also working to a greater extent in the speciality they studied.
Respondents agree that the education system should be adapted to the needs of business and only 23% believe that Bulgaria offers quality education that meets the needs of the labor market. Representatives of Generation Z (those born between 1996 and 2010) are particularly negative on this issue. However, 94% of respondents believe that continuous training and additional qualifications are important for professional development.
On a positive note, 95% of women in the survey believe that their career achievements are the result of hard work, and 84% believe that career development is primarily a matter of personal desire, interest and initiative. As it should be.
The shortage of qualified labor, corruption and inefficient administration remain the main difficulties faced by companies in Bulgaria. This is according to the fourth business environment survey conducted among members of the French-Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) by the Ipsos polling agency between 31 January and 14 February 2025. These problems were cited by 54%, 33% and 25% of respondents respectively and remain as key obstacles since the previous survey at the end of 2023.
The good news is that, overall, companies say they face fewer difficulties - just 36% compared to 56% in the previous period. Another piece of good news is that uncertain regulatory frameworks, bureaucracy and political instability are being cited less frequently as disadvantages, Ipsos said in presenting the results.
