Expert units and committees will assist the largest municipalities in the selection and implementation of urban development projects under the RDP 2021-2027.

The non-governmental sector, business and various organizations with the right to vote in the selection of projects for economic development of large municipal centers

Expert units and committees will assist the ten largest municipalities in the country in the selection of projects to be funded under the priority for integrated urban development of the Regional Development and Development Programme managed by the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works 2021-2027. The new territorial bodies will include experts from local administrations, regional divisions of state structures, representatives of the non-governmental sector, business, civil society organisations, etc., who will play a key role in resettlement, selection and implementation of project proposals for investment in the transformation of the largest municipal centers - Sofia Municipality, Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Stara Zagora, Plovdiv, Ruse, Veliko Tarnovo, Varna, Vidin and Pleven. The aim of the structures is to ensure the application of the partnership principle in the implementation of the priority for urban development, the main focus of which is economic development of the territories, increasing gross domestic product and employment, increasing incomes and living standards and reducing inequalities.

The selection unit, which will be formed by order of the mayor of the municipality, will have functions to organise and conduct public and information events, which explain the requirements for applying to potential beneficiaries, and conducting public discussions of submitted project proposals, with the exception of those envisaged for inclusion in integrated territorial investment concepts. The unit will also select project proposals, check for administrative compliance and eligibility and select for quality according to the Integrated Development Plan of the municipality. Among its functions will be the issuance of letters of support. Its composition will include employees of the relevant municipal administration, including at least one expert to provide information and publicity and at least two employees to ensure the organization of the selection committee and perform functions related to participation in the pre-selection of projects. In order to support the work of the unit, including participation in the resettlement process, it will be possible to hire external experts who are not employees of the municipality.

The Selection Committee will review the project proposals and will perform pre- selection by scoring the project proposals according to approved criteria, approved by the RDP Monitoring Committee and included in the application guidelines. The committee will include a chairman, a non-voting vice-chairman and members. Among them will be representatives of various groups of local stakeholders, two representatives of the municipality, three representatives of the non-governmental sector - non-profit legal entities for public benefit, three business representatives, one representative of the territorial statistical bureaus of the NSI. There will also be one representative of national representative organisations of employers, workers' organisations, and representatives of academia (BAS, universities), regional colleges of chambers of architects and engineers in investment design and the Chamber of Builders in the Republic of Bulgaria. At the discretion of the relevant municipal administration, representatives and other local stakeholders may be invited.

The meetings of the voting committee will include representatives of non-profit legal entities - organisations working in the field of equality between men and women, social inclusion and integration of marginalised groups, environmental organisations and organisations working in the field of education, science and culture and Regional Development Agencies performing public benefit activities on the territory of the district in which the respective municipality is located, as well as representatives of the economic sector - one representative of small, micro and medium enterprises.

The Instruction for structuring the Units and the Selection Committees in the municipalities under Priority 1 and the Guidelines for ensuring publicity in the municipalities of the RDP 2021-2027 are published on the official website of the OPRD 2014-2020 - www.bgregio.eu, at www.eufunds.bg, as well as on the website of the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works. The developed package of documents, Instructions, Instructions, Rules and samples of documents for work during the new programming period are also included.