Regional Policy and Regional Governance - The Bulgarian Institutional Reform That Did Not Take Place

Abstract

Taking up the concept of the nexus between the development processes of regional governance and regional policy, this article analyses the development of regional institutions in Bulgaria, the change in the functions they perform, in parallel with a regional policy analysis. The role of regional governments in the public administration system and the processes of interaction between them and the central and local authorities in the regional governance process are discussed. The reasons for and the limitations to the reforms that have been carried out are identified, as well as whether and how institutional change at this level is or is not taking place. Transfer of practices and Europeanisation have been assessed as major factors for the adoption of a particular regional policy model in Bulgaria. The reverse process - the impact of EU’s regional policy on regional governance – is also discussed in detail. It is suggested that this impact does not lead to a significant change in the institutional system of Bulgaria. The existence of a parallel administrative system for planning and implementation of EU’s regional policy in Bulgaria has been identified, outlining the advantages and disadvantages of implementing such a governance approach.