In the last ten years the regions of Gabrovo, Montana, Pleven, Lovech and Vratsa have lost almost a fifth of their population. Only Varna reports an increase in the number of people living there, but the growth is insignificant and is rather explained by the preservation of parity and keeping the human resource. This was announced by expert of the Institute for Market Economics (IME) Adrian Nikolov during an online forum.

IME experts presented an analysis of the economic and social development of the northern regions of Bulgaria.

Nikolov said that in terms of internal migration Varna continues to be a magnet for people with its more dynamic labour market and better social environment. In the northwest, despite a slight improvement since the last crisis and the slowdown of internal migration processes they are now deteriorating, and, according to the economist, there are expectations that because of the coronavirus crisis, these processes are likely to be deterred.

In terms of natural population growth, Varna also manages to strike a balance between the birth rate and mortality, although this indicator is negative, as is the case everywhere in the country.

The ageing of the population is a problem for some of the more developed areas in the part of Bulgaria studied by IME. The population ageing is fastest in Gabrovo region. Varna, Targovishte and Silistra have a potential for entering the labour market over the next decade, taking into account slower ageing in these regions.

The study reports the differences in employment and pay, which is conditioned by the structure of the workforce. For example, in Gabrovo, Ruse and Tarnovo, nearly 30 percent are higher school graduates, in Varna - about 25 percent, which is a prerequisite for the development of a service-related economy, especially in the field of high technology.

IME also reports that in Vidin, Montana and Pleven there is a gap between the vocational education offered in school and the needs of the labour market, as opposed to the regions along the Danube. The districts of Gabrovo and Veliko Tarnovo also need reforms in vocational education in order to make it closer to the needs of the labour market.