Outgoing Bulgarian Finance Minister Thanks Colleagues for Cooperation

Simeon Djankov, who filed his resignation as Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Bulgaria on Monday, has expressed readiness to continue helping the country any way he can in the future.

"I thank Prime Minister Borisov and the colleagues from the Council of Ministers for the long hours of collaboration and the achievements," Djankov said in a statement distributed by the press office of the Finance Ministry.

"I would like to especially thank the experts at the Finance Ministry who helped Bulgaria regain financial health. I will continue helping in the future any way I can, "he added.

Djankov's resignation comes one day after tens of thousands of Bulgarians rallied in a number of cities to voice their anger at high electricity and heating bills.

The Finance Minister is said to have drawn the ire of Prime Minister Borisov with the delayed payment of agricultural subsidies.

Bulgarian farmers, who had threatened to stage nationwide protests on February 20, were eventually told that the Finance Ministry would use money from the fiscal reserve to pay them the sum of nearly BGN 1 M in EU subsidies per unit of land.

Djankov's resignation came as a surprise to many Bulgarians as Djankov was among the favorite ministers of Prime Minister Borisov and enjoyed wide recognition in the EU for his focus on fiscal stability and reasonable spending.

After Djankov's resignation, Bulgaria's EU Funds Minister Tomislav Donchev will step in as Finance Minister and Regional Development Minister Lilyana Pavlova will assume the responsibilities of Deputy Prime Minister.