Population (2012) 330 499 Area (sq. km) 5 151,1 Number of settlements 207 Share of urban population (%) 71,7
Overview Stara Zagora ranks second in the country according to the size of gross domestic product per capita, after the capital city. The district has a traditionally strong performance in industrial production, and it continued to grow even during the crisis. The impact of the crisis on the labour market was also not as strong, therefore employment remains relatively high. There have been some worrying trends in the field of investments in recent years: the expenditures for acquisition of fixed assets decreased significantly, and foreign direct investment shrank almost to a zero. The road infrastructure in Stara Zagora District improved significantly in recent years. The main development in this field was the completion in 2013 of the Trakia Highway that connects the capital city Sofia with Bourgas and the southern Black Sea coast. Although the density of the road network is not among the highest in the country, the substantial share of highways and Class One roads provides a competitive advantage to the district. Life satisfaction in the district is not very high; in addition to the standard of living and employment that are a typical source of dissatisfaction in the country, air pollution also leads to dissatisfaction with the quality of the environment. Despite the relatively high levels of employment and higher income, the figures on poverty are unfavourable: over 60% live in material deprivation, and inequality levels are among the highest in the country.
Weak Unsatisfactory Average Good Very Good
Economy
Taxes and Administration
Infrastructure
Demography
Education
Healthcare
Environment
Social Environment
180 181 Economy Stara Zagora ranks second in the country according to the size of gross domestic product per capita, after the capital city (according to the latest available data, 2010). The economy of the district kept growing even during the crisis, and is already ahead of Varna District. The employment rate of the population aged 15 and over in 2012 was 48.5%. According to this indicator, Stara Zagora has reached pre-crisis levels and is well ahead of most other districts. Unemployment in 2012 was about 7%, a level that is among the lowest in the country. The data on investments draw a contradictory picture. Weighted by population, the expenditures for acquisition of fixed tangible assets and the cumulative foreign direct investments remain among the highest in the country for 2011, and are lagging behind only the districts of Bourgas, Varna, Plovdiv, and the capital city of Sofia. In recent years there has been a serious decline in the expenditures for acquisition of fixed assets, and a very slight inflow of new foreign investment since the onset of the crisis, which is not typical for other relatively highly developed districts. The rate of absorption of EU funds remains a challenge, and the amounts paid under contracts with municipalities as beneficiaries are smaller than in other districts. Unlike most districts with an absolutely dominant economic centre, Stara Zagora has two balancing secondary centres: the Radnevo – Galabovo energy complex, and Kazanlak. The sectoral structure of the district economy has been traditionally dominated by industry, with nearly 60% of the gross value added in the sector, while the national economy is dominated by services. The structure of the district’s economy is formed by the manufacturing industry, mining industry, energy, trade, and construction. Taxes and Administration Local taxes and charges in municipalities in the Stara Zagora District are relatively low. This applies to both the tax on real estate owned by companies and the tax rate on property transfer, and to the municipal waste collection charge for companies. In the district centre of Stara Zagora, for instance, the tax on property transfer is 1.6%, which is the lowest among all other district centres. The municipal waste collection charges for companies in Kazanlak (2‰) and Stara Zagora (3‰) are also low for the country. The rating given by companies to the work of institutions and the level of corruption is relatively unfavourable. In terms of local administration, respondents appear to have remarks to the clarity of requirements, the speed of service, and the local officials’ integrity. Unofficial payments are primarily in procurement and in obtaining various permits from local authorities. The administrative services provided by the municipalities in the district of Stara Zagora have improved in recent years. The provision of electronic services in major municipalities has reached the “two-way interaction” stage (third out of four possible), and the operation of one-stop services is at an “excellent” stage. This is the case in the municipalities of Galabovo and Kazanlak. Over 40% of respondents said they had used e-services in the past year, and that included receiving information, downloading forms and sending them back electronically to the municipal authorities. Some of the smaller municipalities are still at a very basic stage in the development of administrative services. Infrastructure The road infrastructure in Stara Zagora District improved significantly in recent years. The main development in this field was the completion in 2013 of the Trakia Highway that connects the capital city Sofia with Bourgas and the southern Black Sea coast. Although the density of the road network is not among the highest in the country, the relatively large share of highways and Class One roads provides a competitive advantage to the district. The condition of the highway and first class roads in the district is very good; still problematic is the maintenance of the second and third class roads. The road network provides accessibility from the district centre to almost all municipal centres within 45 minutes. This does not apply to the municipalities of Radnevo, Galabovo, and Bratya Daskalovi. Under construction is the Maritsa Highway linking Trakia Highway with the Kapitan Andreevo Border Check Point. Its construction will also help develop the district as it not only facilitates access to south-eastern Bulgaria, but improves connection to the traffic of people and goods to and from Turkey and the Middle East. The railway network in the district is also a factor in its development; the density of railways is among the highest in the country. The field studies conducted show that companies are more satisfied with the quality of infrastructure than citizens; the latter appear to be rather dissatisfied.
182 183 Demographics Stara Zagora is the fifth largest district in the country with a population of 330 thousand people in 2012, over 70% of them living in urban areas. The decline in population in recent years is due to the sustained negative natural growth rate (an average of -5‰ per year) and some negative trends in migration flows in 2007-2011. In the years of the economic crisis (especially 2010) there was a growth of outbound migration towards the capital city and abroad, but by 2012 these trends have already subsided and the net migration rate is again a positive value. The age dependency ratios have been following the negative trends typical of the whole country. The population aged 65 and over is 1.4 times more than the population aged less than 14, and almost one-third of the population aged 15 to 64 years. About 3,300 children are born per year, which makes the birth rate slightly higher (9.8‰ in 2012) than the national average. The figures suggest that the demographic challenges facing the district are mostly related to ageing of the population and the persistent negative natural increase, while the net migration rate could keep its positive levels depending on the development of the district economy. Education In the last decade, Stara Zagora District saw a continued trend of reducing the number of students, teachers, and schools. A steep decline in the number of teachers and schools was registered last year. The number of teachers per 1,000 students is relatively low for the country, which is typical for districts with a similar profile, i.e. having a dominant district centre. The net enrolment rate (grades 5th through 8th) increased in recent years and is among the highest in the country. The share of dropouts and the one of repeaters remain relatively high. The average score from the matriculation exam in Bulgarian language and literature in the district in 2013 was similar to the national average: 4.27. The percentage of “fail” scores has been rising in recent years, but remains relatively low: about 4% of the students who sat for the exam did not pass it. The Trakiyski University is located in the district centre (Stara Zagora); the university is well known for its strong agricultural department. The University is a factor in attracting young people to the district centre and is currently providing education to about five thousand students. One in five residents aged 25 to 64 years has tertiary education, which is low compared to other thriving economic centres in the country. The shortage of well-trained personnel in the district is felt by business; it is a challenge that both higher education establishments and vocational schools need to deal with. Healthcare There are 16 hospitals in the district; specialised medical care is concentrated in the district centre of Stara Zagora. The District Development Strategy for the period of 2014 - 2020 states that one of the problems facing the health care system in the district is the distance between peripheral municipalities and settlements and the establishments providing medical care. On the other hand, the district reports good levels of availability of key health professionals; the ratio of general practitioners to the population served is among the best in the country. Almost 90% of local residents had valid health insurance in 2012, which is a high proportion compared with the national average. The number of patients who received hospital treatment in 2012 was relatively small: about 170 to every thousand residents. The infant mortality rate decreased significantly in recent years. These figures suggest that, although it suffers from the flaws in the health system typical of the whole country, the district sits relatively well in terms of the organisation of healthcare and in terms of the morbidity of local population. The results of the surveys among citizens still reveal certain issues in the organisation of health care. Almost one in four stated that he/she had to travel outside the district to use health services, with the leading reason given by respondents being the lack of specialist doctors. Nearly one in three citizens who had used health services in the last 12 months, said he/she had been forced to make unofficial payments.
182 183 Environment Stara Zagora District continues to be the most significant source of air pollution in Bulgaria. The emissions of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere have increased significantly over the years and are many times more than other districts in the country. They are caused by large installations in the energy sector and the heavy industry. The district has a modern and reliable environmental monitoring system: automatic measuring stations, satellite monitoring and an early warning system for the Maritsa Iztok energy complex. The military shooting grounds in the village of Zmeevo is also under constant monitoring, but current measurements show no harmful emissions from it. The fine particle pollution caused by heating with solid fuels and the heavy traffic in the district continue to be a problem. The household waste collected has been traditionally low, although it registered a slight increase in the period 2007-2011. The construction of a modern waste disposal site is still behind schedule. There are illegal dumpsites in the villages and in the Roma neighbourhoods throughout the district. Over two-thirds of the population of Stara Zagora District live in settlements with public sewerage systems, and 60% of the population has access to sewerage connected to waste water treatment plants. In 2011, a waste water treatment plant was commissioned in the city of Stara Zagora; the project was financed from EU funds and resulted in a significant improvement in the district’s performance on this indicator. Social Environment Stara Zagora District has an extremely high percentage of people living in material deprivation, that is, who are struggling to meet their basic needs. In 2010, people living in material deprivation were 60% of the population; higher values were reported only in the districts of Veliko Tarnovo and Lovech. The relative share of the poor also increased in recent years; in 2010, over a quarter of the population was living below the poverty line. The relatively high poverty line in the district should be taken into consideration; it is the result of the higher incomes in Stara Zagora District compared to the national average. Inequality in the district is also high; the ratio between the incomes of the richest and the poorest 20% of households was more than seven times in 2010. The surveys among citizens of Stara Zagora district show that the level of life satisfaction is not high. Citizens are mostly satisfied with their health, education, and social life. The sources of dissatisfaction are usual for the country: standard of living (income), employment, infrastructure, and the environment (the latter is a positive factor in almost all other districts). The “personal security” category also fails to contribute greatly to life satisfaction; statistical figures show an increase in the crime rate against the person and against property in the district in recent years. However, one in six respondents said that he/she would permanently relocate to another district, suggesting that the good economic opportunities in the district are stronger than citizens’ subjective feelings of dissatisfaction with certain aspects of their lives.
184 185 Key indicators for the district of Stara Zagora
Indicators / year 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
GDP per capita (BGN, current prices) 8 841 9 207 9 654 n.a. n.a.
Annual average employment rate of the population aged 15+ (%) 48,3 48,6 47,5 48,5 48,5
Annual average unemployment rate of the population aged 15+ (%) 4,4 3,9 6,7 6,3 7,1
Relative share of people living below the district’s poverty line (%) 19,7 24,2 26,9 n.a. n.a.
Age dependency ratio, 65+ to 15-64 (%) 26,8 27,0 27,4 30,0 30,7
Rate of natural increase (‰) -4,8 -4,5 -5,2 -5,5 -5,8
Net migration rate (‰) -1,3 -2,8 -4,9 -1,6 1,9
Relative share of the population aged 25-64 with tertiary education (%) 20,4 19,3 19,3 21,5 20,5
Percent of failed students at state matriculation exams (%) 1,7 3,6 2,9 3,2 3,9
Average grade at state matriculation exams 4,5 4,4 4,4 4,6 4,3
Share of roads in good condition (%) n.a. n.a. 60,4 59,3 59,0
Relative share of households with Internet access (%) 20,1 26,6 31,7 40,4 53,4
Share of the population with access to public sewerage systems, connected to WWTP (%) 18,8 18,8 18,7 60,9 n.a.
Health insured persons as share of the population (%) 87,7 88,8 87,6 90,6 89,7
Infant mortality rate (‰) 8,7 11,9 15,4 8,5 7,7
Number of registered crimes per 1,000 persons of the population 11,5 12,5 16,6 17,5 15,2
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