Mr. Kalman Mizsei has been UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe and CIS and Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations since February 2001. Before that he was Director of AIG Global Investment Group's team as investment advisor to the largest private equity fund in the region. He led the due diligence process resulting in AIG's acquisition of Bulgarian Post Bank. Mr. Mizsei arrived in Bulgaria on Monday on the occasion of the tenth enniversary since the establishment of the UNDP Office in Sofia. He participated in the presentation of the UNDP Global Human Development Report 2002 on Tuesday morning.
Mr. Mizsei met Martina Iovcheva
Q: During your visit in Sofia, you meet top Bulgarian politicians. What are the three recommendations that you give to Bulgaria's decision makers?
A: Make progress in fighting corruption, progress in decentralizing the state, more decision- making and more fiscal power on the local level and resolute progress with the economic reforms.
Q: What is the key message in this year's global human development report of UNDP?
A: Democracy doesn't stop at elections, democracy has to be deepened. It depends on freedom of media, depends on honest and independent judiciary. It depends on control by watchdogs, by transparency of the public administration so that it doesn't generate more corruption.
Q: Bulgaria ranks 62d in this year's Global Human Development Index. What do you think are the biggest challenges and problems Bulgaria faces today?
A: First of all is geography. Second is good policies to sustain very good macroeconomic policies that you have had in the last five years, sustain good structural policies that you have started. The fact that you will get much less money for your telecom company than you would have gotten two or three years ago is because it wasn't sold to a good company two or three years ago. The process of privatization - it's good that it started a few years ago - is much slower than it should be. So, privatization has to be accelerated. We have been talking about decentralization of public administration, which has great potential if it is done right. Deepening democracy is something very important - to clean up corruption in the public administration, among the politicians, in the judiciary, among the customs officers. These are all extremely important things.
Q: Generally, the image of the former communist bloc countries is not very good. How could that change?
A: Let me say there's difference between countries. Those countries, which are going to be the first in the accession to the European Union, their image is much improving. I should say there is a tremendous positive historical process of catching up with the rest in terms of democratic institutions and market economy. As you go further East, the image is very bad because of bad and corrupt governmental practices. There are of course countries in between. I think judiciary, lawfulness of everyday life, protection of human rights, property are of big importance. But I think Bulgaria's image is improving.
Q: How do you assess the work of the office of UNDP in Sofia ten years after its establishment?
A: Our Bulgaria's office is the biggest source of pride in the region. It is one of the best country offices. "Beautiful Bulgaria" project is something very good. It generates jobs and it connects the Bulgarian people to their culture and roots. The Local Agenda 21 project, I believe, has contributed to the current decentralization program of the government, which is very important. Our anti-corruption work is very good. Our employment support through our JOBS project is again very good. We have a very active office here in Bulgaria.
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