In brief

After two years of political crisis and five parliamentary elections, the two largest parties in parliament, the centre-right Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) and the centrist and reformist We Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria (PP-DB), struck a power-sharing agreement in June 2023. The cabinet is dominated by PP-DB-nominated experts; the prime minister will rotate between a PP-DB and GERB candidate every nine months. Judicial reform and anti-corruption oversight are policy priorities. Partial accession to the Schengen area will take place on March 31st, and accession to the euro zone may take place in 2025. The lengthy political crisis has hurt investor confidence and this will weigh on the economy in the short term, with another government collapse and snap election remaining a risk. Over the medium term, Bulgaria will benefit from the EU's Recovery and Resilience Facility, which will support digitalisation and adoption of green technologies. 

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