Bulgaria and OECD with Joint Action Plan for Membership Invitation
24 January 2019 News
Deputy Foreign Minister Todor Stoyanov and Andreas Schaal, Director of Global Relations with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and G20 Sous Sherpa discussed in Sofia the preparation of a joint action plan of the OECD and Bulgaria to make sure this country receives sooner an invitation to membership talks.
During the meeting in the Foreign Ministry, Deputy Foreign Minister Stoyanov stressed that receiving a date for start of membership talks with the OECD is among the top priorities of the Bulgarian government. He recalled that Bulgaria submitted an official application in 2007.
“We are thankful for the support we receive from the OECD Secretary General and the Secretariat. The joint action plan should be adopted the soonest possible. We will use it as an instrument for stepping up the process of complying with the membership criteria,” said Todor Stoyanov.
The Bulgarian diplomat underscored the considerable efforts his country has made to be admitted to the OECD and pointed out that Bulgaria, being a EU member state, has already met the majority of admission criteria.
“We are convinced that Bulgaria deserves to be invited to OECD membership talks,” said Deputy Minister Stoyanov. “We are wasting no time. We are working hard to meet the criteria. The government has made important decisions, created an interagency coordination mechanism and has a roadmap. We expect strong support from our partners and OECD members. It will send a clear message that our efforts are being appreciated,” Todor Stoyanov added.
On behalf of OECD Secretary General José Ángel Gurría, Andreas Schaal expressed satisfaction with the fine cooperation that exists between Bulgaria and the organization.
Andreas Schaal said that OECD will continue to work with Bulgaria and one of the reasons for his visit is that they want to waste no time. He said that the efforts this country is making are visible.
He said that the OECD Secretariat supports the policy of enlargement of the organization and admission of new member states from Europe. Andreas Schaal said that geo-strategically, the countries of Southeast Europe, the Pacific and Central Asia are becoming increasingly important for the OECD and its member states.
The next stage of enlargement is an important thing for the organization, said Schaal. It is a strategic question: opening up to Europe and also to Latin America. OECD wants to have members on all continents and make sure its standards are relevant across the world, said Schaal.
He said that other membership applicants are Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Argentina, Brazil and Peru. Bulgaria is applying together with Croatia and Romania.
At a subsequent meeting in the Foreign Ministry with representatives of the Ministries of Economy, Finance, Environment and Water, Energy and Regional Development, and of the National Statistical Institute, Andreas Schaal was briefed on details of the cooperation which Bulgaria has with the OECD.
The OECD was established in 1961 to encourage policies for sustainable development, increased living standards of the population and financial stability. The organization currently includes 37 member states from Europe, North America, South America and Asia. The European Commission participates in the work of the OECD as an observer.
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