“The high unemployment rate is one of the biggest challenges Bulgaria faces,” Mihal Rutkowski, Social Protection Sector Manager with the World Bank, said when presenting a Bank's report to members of the Parliamentary Social Committee on December 13. The 18,6% unemployment rate in Bulgaria is one of the highest among the countries in Central and Eastern Europe, but the worst thing is that 60% of the unemployed have been without a job for more than a year, Mihal Rutkowski pointed out. He said that the Social Security System in Bulgaria has a good basis, but it does not work with the poorer municipalities. The minimal-income system also was approved, although only 30% of the poor have access to its services. According to the report this necessitates the further development of the system, which will benefit the poorest groups of the society after the rise in the electricity and heating prices. Meanwhile Social Minister Lidia Shuleva and World Bank director for Bulgaria Andrew Vorkink signed a USD 338,000 grant agreement. The grant is provided by the fund for institutional development with the bank and aims at helping the further development of the mechanisms for monitoring and assessment of poverty.