The Ministers of Transport, Information Technology and Communications of Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia send a common letter to the European Commission for support of the project for cross-border infrastructure for Internet access in one of the less developed regions of Europe – the Northern Balkans. Today, the Deputy Minister of Transport, Information Technology and Communications, Mr. Valery Borissov has visited Bucharest in order the shaping of the document to be finalized.
The three Ministers – Mr. Ivaylo Moskovski, Mrs. Delia Popescu and Mr. Rasim Ljajić as well as the Chairman of the State Agency for Electronic Government, Mr. Rosen Zhelyazkov have addressed the European Commission for a support to the Project management team for defining the sources of finance for the initiative realization. Together the three countries share the same challenges in the development of the broadband Internet access. The Northern Balkans represent a hotspot area for the migration on the way to the Western-European countries. The three countries have similar problem in the borders control. The problem is related to the connectivity of the surveillance cameras, and the information exchange between the border authorities. In this line, the project may have strategic benefits to Europe and may contribute for significant strengthening of the control over the situation with the refugees and the illegal migration, have stated the Ministers.
The benefits from the Project include not only the enhance of the cross-border cooperation between the public institutions in the field of administration, security, education, culture, but also the establishment of a better environment for partnership between the business of the countries in the area of ecology in the Danube region, transport, tourism, telemedicine etc.
In the letter is also stated that the access to super-fast Internet of new generation is crucial for the intelligent development of the local economics.
Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia joined their efforts yet in 2013 for a trilateral agreement for establishment of a cross-border broadband infrastructure. The initiative came from the Bulgarian Ministry of Transport, Information Technology and Communications. In the past three years, it was discussed during a number of meetings between the Prime Ministers of the countries, as well as between representatives of the three countries with the European Commission, World Bank, European Investment Bank, and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
The business model of the initiative follows the logic of the already implemented projects for fast Internet in Bulgaria and Romania, financed under their national operational programmes with funds from the European Regional Development Fund. Bulgaria realized successfully project for fast Internet in the rural areas, amounting to approximately 20 million Euro and is planning a next phase to 2020. Romania completed project for 70 million Euro and is also planning a continuation. Serbia from its side has planned to achieve the objectives of the Digital Agenda for Europe.
