Selected from the web and translated by Eng. Anelia Dimova, Information society policy expert Bulgaria is among the EU countries where social inequalities represent one of the biggest challenges. They are the result of a combination of economic, social and institutional factors. Among them are: • Low educational outcomes and a shrinking workforce, which lead to a shortage of qualified personnel, thus limiting employment opportunities and the development of human capital. • Tight labor market and shortage of workers in key sectors, which puts pressure on wages and productivity. • A highly centralized fiscal system, which limits the autonomy and own revenues of municipalities, thus hindering regional development. • The social system has limited adequacy and sustainability, while the pension system operates with a deficit financed by the state budget. • High energy dependence and inflation make the economy vulnerable, as energy and basic goods prices put a disproportionate pressure on low-income households. • Corruption and uncompetitive public procurement limit quality investment and the efficient use of public funds. • Regional stratification risks deepening without targeted measures and Bulgaria will remain below the EU average in key sustainable development indicators, hindering social convergence. To overcome social inequalities, structural reforms are needed to address income inequalities, establish a fair tax and social security system, combat poverty and social exclusion, ensure accessible and quality healthcare and education, protect workers’ rights and expand the scope of collective bargaining. In 2026, social inequalities in Bulgaria continue to be among the highest in the European Union. Over 21% of the population lives below the poverty line, and the Gini coefficient exceeds 39%, which clearly shows significant income polarization. Despite the increase in the minimum wage, inflation and high food prices have a disproportionately heavy impact on the most vulnerable groups of the population. Territorial imbalances remain a critical problem. Investments, infrastructure and high incomes are concentrated mainly in Sofia and a few large economic centers, while in the North-West and other peripheral regions of the country, poverty and unemployment levels are critical. Deficits in public services, especially in healthcare and education, are uneven and create additional barriers to social mobility. The lack of a non-taxable minimum and the flat tax burden exacerbate the situation of low-income households, which pay a significantly higher share of their income in taxes and social security contributions. Pensioners, low-income families and people with disabilities remain the most vulnerable to social exclusion. Debates around the 2026 state budget have led employers’ organisations to raise questions about the adequacy of social benefits and measures to address the demographic crisis. The European Commission’s 2026 analysis highlights the need for urgent reforms, pointing to critical levels of poverty and social exclusion, structural problems in healthcare, including shortages of specialists and high costs for patients, as well as the need for a fairer tax system and curbing the informal economy. The Commission also highlights the need for better integrated social and labour services and tackling the cost of living. Forecasts and trends For the period 2026-2027, existing challenges and new risks are expected to continue. Demographic pressures will increase spending on pensions, healthcare and long-term care. The government fiscal deficit will limit opportunities for social investment. Regional stratification risks deepening without targeted measures and Bulgaria will remain below the EU average in key sustainable development indicators, hindering social convergence. Conclusion On 22 July 2026, the European Commission adopted a Communication on the European Pillar of Social Rights. It assesses progress made in strengthening social rights in the EU and sets priorities for further action, outlining ways to ensure that the European social model continues to deliver fairness and prosperity. Adopted in 2017, the European Pillar of Social Rights sets out 20 principles to ensure fair working conditions, social protection and equal opportunities. The new Communication highlights three areas requiring urgent attention: tackling affordability and the cost of living, using artificial intelligence (AI) for the future of work and shared prosperity, and reducing inequalities and widening equal opportunities. The Commission will launch a consultation with social partners on people facing significant barriers to employment. This consultation will feed into the Commission’s action to tackle poverty, exclusion, labour market inclusion and competitiveness. The Commission will set up a new High-Level Group on the impact of artificial intelligence on the labour market. The Communication highlights actions to improve equal opportunities, including support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to implement the Pay Transparency Directive, and presents the upcoming Right to Residence initiative and the EU Youth Strategy for the period after 2027. Later this year, the Commission will present the Quality Jobs Act. It will review and introduce new indicators to measure the quality of jobs in the EU, complementing the European employment, skills and poverty reduction targets for 2030. Recommendations to tackle the problem According to the EC report, structural reforms are needed to overcome social inequalities. In education, quality must be improved, early school leaving must be reduced and skills must be aligned with labour market needs. Local authorities must be strengthened by increasing the fiscal autonomy of municipalities to improve the capacity for regional development and investment. Social protection must be reformed to ensure adequate pensions and benefits while preserving the sustainability of the pension system. Investments in infrastructure – transport, digital connectivity and energy efficiency – are key to improving access to services in peripheral and rural areas. Fighting corruption and improving public procurement will ensure the effective use of public funds. Improving energy efficiency in housing and industry will reduce import dependency and alleviate energy poverty. Whether the new Bulgarian government can address these challenges remains to be seen. Source

Selected from the network by Eng. Anelia Dimova, Information Society Policy Expert We are witnessing an epochal shift. The turbulent AI era is here. The choices we make now are critical. We need a plan to ensure that the good outweighs the bad. The transition to AI comes with three big risks. Many jobs will disappear forever. AI will empower people (and perhaps AIs) to do more harm. AI could stunt our kids’ development and replace human relationships. After Pope Leo XIV, Bill Gates has written his own encyclical on AI. He is asking an equally fundamental question about artificial intelligence: How do we make sure AI makes humanity better off — rather than simply making technology more powerful? That question can no longer be left to technologists, Big Tech companies or governments acting in isolation. AI can become an extraordinary force for progress: better healthcare, better education, more productive companies, more effective public services and entirely new forms of innovation. But it can also accelerate inequality, destroy jobs faster than we can replace them, concentrate economic power and undermine some of the human relationships and institutions on which our societies depend. So the time for observation is over. We need action. Europe has a unique role to play. Europe has rightly taken the lead in regulating technology. But regulation without innovation will merely make us the referee of a game played by others. Our next ambition must therefore be bigger: Europe should combine regulation with innovation and build an AI economy based on European values, European entrepreneurship and European technological capabilities. Not AI versus humanity. Not regulation versus innovation. But technology, entrepreneurship and governance working together to create economic and societal value. The choices we make now will determine whether AI becomes primarily an engine of concentration or an engine of shared prosperity. Europe should not watch that future being built elsewhere. We should help build it. Bill Gates’ message to leaders is: “You have a chance to act now, before unemployment rises sharply, communities are hurting, and public trust has eroded. You can make sure that your government handles the problem holistically, rather than divvying it up into multiple bureaucratic fiefdoms. You can make sure AI benefits everyone. And you can work with other governments to meet this national and global challenge. Finally, I will try to widen the circle of people shaping this debate. It should include workers, college students who are about to enter the workforce, community leaders, religious leaders and faith-based organizations, parents, educators, and others whose voices often aren’t heard but who have insight into how the transition will affect people’s lives.” How do we ensure that the benefits of AI reach people who do not already have wealth, influence, and access? How do we strengthen the social safety net and help workers and communities thrive even when they’re displaced? How should public institutions adapt? And how do we preserve our humanity through all of this? “This unprecedented technology demands an unprecedented global response. If we get it right, the payoff for humanity will be phenomenal and the world will be a more equitable place. I rarely stop thinking about AI – not because I have all the answers, but because the questions it raises are too consequential to leave to a small group of technologists. Leaders across academia, business, government, and civil society all have a role to play in shaping what comes next.” Source https://www.gatesnotes.com/home/home-page-topic/reader/bad-news-is-not-the-only-news

Selected from the network by Eng. Anelia Dimova, Information Society Policy Expert According to the CEM Annual Report 2025, in 2025, the regulator’s agenda was reflecting the EU level priorities while responding to specific nationally developments, such as monitoring on Bulgaria’s euro currency adoption process. The CEM also conducted an express focused review of the coverage of the end-of-2025 public protests, where broadcasters adjusted schedules and expanded live updates to keep audiences informed in real time. Child-protection remains a key focus: the CEM reviewed, among others, coverage of a high-profile case, tracing its spread from digital platforms to mainstream programmes, assessing reach and context across linear and online services. The CEM also brought journalists and experts together to discuss how the EMFA should be put into practice in Bulgaria, with attention to newsroom independence, public service media, ownership transparency, state advertising and audience rights. In 2024, the CEM refused to renew the licenses of radio providers who failed to actually broadcast or create programs, arguing that radio frequencies are a limited public resource that must be used effectively. In 2025, the Supreme Administrative Court overturned these decisions, ruling that the only legal requirement for a license renewal is submitting the application on time, regardless of whether the provider is active. In its 2025 annual report, the CEM strongly opposes this interpretation, viewing it as a dangerous precedent that reduces the regulator to a “registrar” and ignores the constitutional principle that the state must manage the radio frequency spectrum in the public interest. These decisions are also being contested at court, as the regulator stated its determination to continue to fight for its right to ensure media pluralism and fair competition. In 2023, Bulgaria transposed the two directives at the heart of the European Union’s copyright reform: Directive (EU) 2019/789 laying down rules on the exercise of copyright and related rights applicable to certain online transmissions of broadcasting organisations and retransmissions of television and radio programmes and amending Council Directive 93/83/EEC, and Directive (EU) 2019/790 on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market and amending Directives 96/9/EC and 2001/29/EC. On 11 April 2025, the Accessibility Requirements for Products and Services Law was promulgated in the State Gazette. This legislative act applies inter alia to services providing access to audiovisual media services. The new law regulates: • the accessibility requirements for products and services; • the procedure for assessing the conformity of products with these requirements; • the obligations of economic operators who place products on the market or provide services; • the supervision of products made available on the market or put into operation, or both; and • the control of the compliance of services with the accessibility requirements. The CEM is designated as the supervisory authority for services providing access to audiovisual media services. Starting in July 2025, the CEM began collaborating with major telecommunications and media associations to implement new accessibility standards, focusing on technical solutions like the European Broadcasting Union’s R110 recommendation for digital subtitling. These ongoing efforts, extending into 2026, aim to fulfil legal obligations and proactively enhance media service accessibility for people with disabilities through continued industry cooperation. Pursuant to the amendments to the Electronic Communications Law promulgated on 21 November 2025, Bulgaria has designated the relevant authorities for implementing the DSA. In particular, the CEM is empowered to act as a competent authority with respect to providers of intermediary services that qualify as video-sharing platform services domiciled in Bulgaria, supervising their compliance with applicable DSA obligations (including, as relevant, obligations concerning illegal content processes, advertising transparency and the protection of minors). Within this framework, the CRC is the designated Bulgaria’s Digital Services Coordinator, and the CEM’s supervision of video-sharing platforms operates in coordination with the CRC. According to its publicly available plan for 2026, the CEM has highlighted several key priorities: • children online and their use of social media, online education and protection from harmful content; • artificial intelligence in the media, focusing on its benefits and risks; and • the challenges facing regional journalism. Source: https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=c7e88bf4-cf65-4c3c-9583-949592226885&utm_source=Lexology+Daily+Newsfeed&utm_medium=HTML+email+-+Body++General+section&utm_campaign=Lexology+subscriber+daily+feed&utm_content=Lexology+Daily+Newsfeed+2026-07-28&utm_term   

Selected from the network by Eng. Anelia Dimova, Information Society Policy Expert and Dr. Bissera Zankova, Media Expert The report is an in-depth review of the processes related to artificial intelligence (AI), and in particular how Bulgaria is preparing for the implementation of the European Union Law on Artificial Intelligence, by combining strategic investments in high-performance computing, national data management, excellence in AI research and support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Coordinated by the Ministry of eGovernment (MEG), Bulgaria is building its AI ecosystem through institutions including the leading research and innovation centers in Sofia INSAIT, GATE, IICT-BAS, the Discoverer and HEMUS supercomputers, the National Health Information System and the expanding network of the European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH). INSAIT, jointly established with ETH Zurich and EPFL, is advancing frontier research in AI through BgGPT – the country’s first open-source Bulgarian language model, while GATE is developing national data spaces and responsible AI experimentation. Discoverer, HEMUS and the upcoming Avitohol supercomputer, together with Bulgaria’s participation in Euro HPC, provide the computing capacity needed for the development, testing, validation and reproducibility of AI models. Health data governance is advancing through the National Health Information System (NHIS), the National Health Strategy 2030 and participation in the VELES Centre of Excellence, creating managed environments for validation of high-risk AI and cross-border sharing of health data in South-Eastern Europe. Four European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIH), the Competitiveness and Innovation Programme for Enterprises (€200 million) as well as the Invest EU guarantee programme are reducing compliance barriers for start-ups and SMEs seeking to deploy and scale up AI solutions. Bulgaria’s national approach is built on a responsible, human-centred deployment of the Bulgaria AI Strategy and is based on ethics, privacy, security and human-centricity. Data governance and re-use are treated as a key element for the development of artificial intelligence. Bulgaria is investing in a strategic computing infrastructure with high-performance and reliable computing capacities and is implementing the principle of innovation from research to market. Research and innovation are supported by the aforementioned institutions such as INSAIT and EPFL, as well as by the Institute of Information and Communication Technologies (IICT-BAS). Bulgaria is prioritizing the development of AI skills in society through initiatives including AI guidelines for schools, a vocational education program for specialized AI programmers (580 students in 13 secondary schools), the INSAIT Explorer scholarship program combining university education with research, the GATE Master’s program in Big Data Technologies, and the first International Olympiad in Artificial Intelligence, held in 2024. However, the transition from strategy to operational infrastructure poses challenges. The key question is whether Bulgaria can transform its strong investments in AI computing, data management, and research into a mature ecosystem for conformity assessment before the obligations for high-risk services under the EU Artificial Intelligence Law enter into full force. With the EU Artificial Intelligence Act fully implemented, should Bulgaria prioritize the designation of a clear national competent authority for AI or focus first on accelerating operational capacity for conformity assessment through its high-performance computing, research and data management infrastructure? Data and computing resources are indeed the first path to readiness for the implementation of the European Union act. However, key gaps remain: the national AI strategy lacks a dedicated action plan with specific implementation deadlines, implementation protocols are at an early stage, and the broader conformity assessment ecosystem is still developing. Contributors to the report include Sean Musch, AI & Partners, Michael Charles Borrelli, AI & Partners, Charles Kerrigan, CMS UK, Hristo Butchvarov, Toni Stoykova, Yanislava Hristova and Etien Yovchev. Source  https://www.linkedin.com/posts/ai-%26-partners_cp-bg-activity-7490647847911063552-jssz/

Selected from the network by Eng. Anelia Dimova, Information Society Policy Expert The State of the Digital Decade 2026 report assesses the EU’s progress toward the 2030 Digital Decade targets. The 2026 report highlights that, while the foundations of the EU’s digital transformation are in place, the scale, speed and coordination of implementation need to be significantly reinforced. The EU has advanced in several areas, including connectivity, business digitalisation and the deployment of common digital infrastructures. However, significant gaps remain in foundational technologies, computing capacity, cybersecurity, advanced digital take-up, digital skills and scale-up capacity. Moreover, the progressive phase-put of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) creates a risk of investment discontinuity. The 2026 State of the Digital Decade report thus calls on Member States to use the next adjustment of their Digital Decade national roadmaps (December 2026) to address existing gaps through concrete measures and reforms, while ensuring stronger alignment with the next Multi-Annual Financial Framework (MFF) and the future EU Competitiveness Fund. The report also stresses the need for deeper EU-level coordination. Source: https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/factpages/bulgarias-2026-digital-decade-country-report

Selected from the network by Eng. Anelia Dimova, Information Society Policy Expert In the aftermath of the Second World War, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) was founded with the aim of bringing together public service broadcasters across Europe, strengthening ties between nations, and fostering the exchange of knowledge and expertise. To support this mission, the EBU established the Euroradio and Eurovision networks, enabling the sharing of programmes, news, and sports content among its member broadcasters. The Eurovision Song Contest itself emerged from this broader vision as a bold experiment in television broadcasting – a live, simultaneous, transnational spectacle that, while familiar today, was a remarkable technological achievement at the time of its inception. Eurovision is one of the events that appears on the lists of events of major importance for society in individual countries. According to Article 14(1) of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive, which repeats the wording of the Convention on Transfrontier Television, Member States may take measures to ensure that broadcasters under their jurisdiction do not broadcast on an exclusive basis events which are considered to be of major importance for society in such a way as to deprive a significant part of the public in that Member State of the opportunity to follow such events through live or recorded coverage on free television. Eurovision is the most frequently cited non-sporting event in European countries. It continues to develop and improve to this day. A new digital Eurovision experience At the heart of the celebrations is a brand-new Eurovision website and app (eurovision.com), offering fans an enhanced and more interactive experience than ever before. A major new feature is the Eurodex, a comprehensive archive available on eurovision.com and the official app, featuring results and information from every Eurovision Song Contest across its 70-year history. Fans can browse each year of the Contest and explore its history in depth, bringing seven decades of the world’s largest live music event to life in one place. Fans can also engage directly with the Contest through My Scoreboard, allowing users to rank their favourite songs from this year’s competition as well as from every edition since 1956 and share their preferences with friends on social media. Introducing Eurofan: Bringing Fans Closer than Ever Before A brand-new initiative that recognises the vital role fans have always played in shaping the Contest has also been launched – Eurofan. Eurofan brings fans closer than ever before, offering exclusive content, ticket opportunities, experiences and collectibles. Crucially, it also creates new ways for fans to make their voice heard through Eurofan Voice, a dedicated fan initiative launching during the Contest period, giving audiences the opportunity to help shape the future of the Eurovision experience. Eurofan is free to join at www.eurovision.com. Expanding the Eurovision Song Contest universe To mark the 70th milestone, the EBU has also launched a new official Eurovision Shop, offering a fresh range of merchandise inspired by the Contest’s iconic legacy and new brand identity launched for the 70th anniversary. In addition, all Eurovision Song Contest winning performances are now available on the official YouTube channel, made possible with the support of EBU Members. This includes rare and historic footage such as the 1964 winning performance, restored from its archive by Yle in Finland. A global search has also been launched to find complete versions of both the 1964 show and the very first Eurovision Song Contest from 1956, currently missing from any archive. For the first time in nearly a decade, the Eurovision Song Contest is also streamed live on YouTube in the United States, in addition to every other country worldwide, expanding access to the world’s biggest music market and new audiences worldwide. Celebrating 70 years of music, culture and technology The 70th Eurovision Song Contest was hosted by the EBU’s Austrian member, ORF, and featured 35 EBU members. A new publication, “Eurovision Song Contest: Seven Decades of Glitz, Glamour and Unforgettable Performances”, released by BBC Books, offers a definitive look at the Contest’s history, most memorable moments and cultural impact. Global expansion Looking to the future, the EBU has also announced the first new cross-continent edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, since its debut in 1956, with Eurovision Song Contest Asia launching in November 2026. Hosted in Bangkok, the inaugural event will bring together broadcasters from across the region, reaching a potential audience of over 600 million people and extending the Contest’s “United by Music” ethos to a new continent. Martin Green CBE, Director of the Eurovision Song Contest at the EBU, said: “As we celebrate 70 years of the Eurovision Song Contest, this is a moment to reflect on everything the Contest has achieved – and to look ahead to where it can go next. “From an archival deep-dive and creating new digital experiences for fans, to expanding the Eurovision brand into new regions and delivering a spectacular show in Vienna, this anniversary is about celebrating the Contest’s unique ability to bring people together across borders and generations. At the heart of Eurovision is joy – the shared joy of music, performance and communication – and in this landmark year we are proud to celebrate this spirit. Celebratory shows from EBU Members across Europe Participating public broadcasters from more than 30 countries are marking the Eurovision Song Contest’s 70th anniversary with a diverse selection of dedicated programming, spanning documentaries, live companion shows, digital formats and special radio broadcasts. Last but not least, fans and visitors   encounter Auri, the official Eurovision 2026 mascot, across the city, appearing at key moments throughout Eurovision week and in wider promotional activities, embodying the Contest’s spirit of creativity, connection and shared experience. Together, these elements will ensure that the 70th Eurovision Song Contest is not only a world-class television event, but a multi-layered cultural celebration marking 70 years of being United by Music. Bulgaria’s Dara wins spectacular 70th Eurovision Song Contest with ‘Bangaranga’ DARA has won the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 for BNT with the song ‘Bangaranga’, securing Bulgaria’s first-ever Eurovision victory. Hosted by ORF at the Wiener Stadthalle, the 70th Eurovision Song Contest brought together 25 finalists and millions of viewers worldwide under

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Compiled from the net Eng. Anelia Dimova, Information Society Policy Expert On 17 March 2026 the European Commission organized its annual strategic workshop on the digital decade online. Brussels wants to link the review of European digital targets to competitiveness and sovereignty and particularly to the next multiannual financial framework. What merits attention is that the Union is beginning to treat digital policy not as an isolated sector, but as a component of its economic, industrial and geopolitical security. The 2025 report on the state of the digital decade had showed that the Union is making progress in certain areas, such as basic 5G coverage and the deployment of edge nodes, but that it still remains far from its targets on artificial intelligence, semiconductors, standalone 5G and digital skills. The Commission had also recalled that the national roadmaps already represent €288.6 billion in measures, while still judging this effort insufficient in view of the scale of Europe’s delay. The digital decade framework rests on four pillars: connectivity, digital skills, the digitalisation of businesses and that of public services. It provides for annual monitoring by the Commission and coordination between the Union and the Member States. But this mechanism, as it stands, shows its limits insofar as it does not transform stated objectives quickly enough into industrial, technological and human capabilities. European digital competitiveness is not decided solely in the production of rules. It is decided in the ability to finance infrastructure, support industrial adoption, diffuse AI throughout the productive fabric and train the workforce. That is precisely why the Commission is linking this workshop to the future European budget. In its proposal for the 2028-2034 financial framework, it presents a budget of €2 trillion over seven years, of which €409 billion is dedicated to competitiveness in the global economy.  The programme for digital sovereignty places cloud infrastructure, quantum, defence-related digital technologies and space-based digital systems at the centre. For a long time, European digital policy was dominated by the logic of the internal market, by competition and by the regulation of platforms. Though these dimensions remain decisive they are no longer sufficient. The geopolitical shock, dependence on non-European cloud, competition over semiconductors, the irruption of generative AI and the rise of civil-military uses are imposing a change of doctrine and approach. The digital decade must also be judged by the control of value chains, technological resilience and European autonomy of decision.  Politically this workshop raised the question whether the Union wanted to continue measuring its delay, or finally it wanted to identify its intolerable dependencies and concentrate its resources on a few decisive capabilities. There are too many objectives on the European agenda, too many instruments and too many national compromises which hamper Europe to move forward at a higher speed. The workshop united three debates that Brussels had too often treated separately so far: the assessment of progress, technological sovereignty and long-term financing. The year 2026 will show whether the revision of the digital decade enables the Union to move beyond administrative monitoring and enter into a genuine policy of power. Sources: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/workshop-digital-decade-europe-finally-seeking-align-its-gitton-otwme/ 

Spain Czech Republic Ukraine Germany March 18th: https://de.ejo-online.eu/internationales/stipendienprogramm-in-suedafrika-will-luecken-in-der-klimaberichterstattung-schliessen English Original: https://ajenafrica.com/fossil-free-south-africa-launches-climate-journalism-fellowship-to-tackle-reporting-gap/ UK