During Phase IV of the CityLinks program in Bulgaria, a consortium of 14 Bulgarian cities, assisted by U.S. counterparts, joined together in the pursuit of Local Economic Development (LED). The Consortium for Local Economic Development has been instrumental in increasing the economic development capacities of Bulgarian local governments, institutionalizing the professional approach to active economic development programs, marketing municipal resources, preparing the cities to meet the needs of the national and international business communities, and attracting private investment. Cities have developed marketing strategies, established business advisory boards, developed economic development action plans, appointed LED professionals and sent them to training, and have received certification as 'ready for business' with the ultimate goal of attracting investment and creating jobs in their communities. They have also collaborated to develop a website, invest.bg , to market Bulgaria to investors, which includes pages about the member cities' assets and resources.
The multi-lateral cooperation has resulted in broader impact for Bulgarian local governments and has yielded an improved competence in the technical areas addressed. ICMA advocates that this successful program be extended to address the challenges Bulgarian municipalities face today and further engrain the program achievements in Bulgarian local communities. The extended CityLinks program will continue to enable Bulgarian municipalities to better serve their constituents through effective collaboration and know-how transfer between Bulgarian cities, as well as continuing to have U.S. practitioners provide guidance and creative solutions to their Bulgarian partners. ICMA is collaborating with the Bulgarian Foundation for Local Government Reform (FLGR) to achieve the above objectives. Established in the mid-1990s by USAID/Bulgaria, the organization has developed into one of the leading institutions supporting the development of strong, democratic local governance in Bulgaria, and operates an array of programs financed by USAID, the EU and other funders.
The Bulgaria LED program will consolidate the successful results achieved under the previous program and ensure lasting legacies beyond USAID graduation by:
- Multiplying and enhancing the impact of the practices/models implemented under the previous phases of the Technical Twinning/CityLinks Program,
- Encompassing at least 40 new municipalities, and
- Institutionalizing its achievements by anchoring its activities in local expertise within the municipalities, as well as, the Foundation for Local Government Reform (FLGR), the leading local government support organization in Bulgaria.
This three-year program seeks to expand the consortium and build the capacity of cities as LED experts and mentors through training, internships, certification, and specific project implementation in order to ensure sustainability in Bulgaria beyond the scope of the USAID- funded program.
After the completion of the first round of certifications, nine new cities received basic certification and five cities created workforce development programs and business advisory councils, which qualified them for certification with Excellence. The cities then identified LED projects, developed action plans and are currently implementing them with U.S. and Bulgarian technical assistance.