The Bulgarian government has named Kalin Mitrev as the country's representative in the Board of Directors at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

Mitrev will also assume the Alternate Director's position, heading the bank's joint office for Poland, Bulgaria and Albania.

He "has long experience in working with the EBRD, which ensures coherence and efficiency in the use of resources of the institution and the support for programs and projects that are important to Bulgaria," the government said in a statement after a Wednesday cabinet meeting.   

Mitrev has held the office twice before being replaced by Slavka Slavova in 2009. The latter was dismissed in April 2014 under a socialist-liberal administration (which reappointed Mitrev), claiming she had learned about the reshuffle by the media.

Mitrev's wife, Irina Bokova, is the Director-General of UNESCO, whose name has been officially submitted by Bulgaria as a candidate to take over as UN Secretary General in February.