The team of the National Association of Municipalities in the Republic of Bulgaria (NAMRB) will insist on the elaboration of a national programme for digital transformation and data security of all municipalities, Vratsa Mayor Kalin Kamenov told the participants in a forum on “Digital Municipality: Shared Solutions, Secure Data, Common Capacity.” The discussion was held within the Annual Meeting of Local Authorities in Bulgaria in Albena on Sunday.
Cybersecurity, a licensed environment, and reliable archiving cannot depend on the financial capabilities of individual municipalities, Kamenov added. The NAMRB proposes that the national programme cover the period from 2027 to 2030, with approximately EUR 31 million in funding allocated for its implementation.
Municipalities do not all require the same amount of funding to digitize their operations and ensure their cybersecurity, Kamenov noted. According to him, each municipality should receive support based on its specific needs. He emphasized that small municipalities in particular face challenges, as some of them have not yet digitized their archives.
The NAMRB wants the Ministry of Innovation and Digital Transformation to include funding in its draft budget as early as 2027, and for the medium-term budget forecast to provide for the full allocation of the necessary funds by the Finance Ministry. The programme should then be developed and administered by the Ministry of Innovation in partnership with the NAMRB, and the Association’s team is ready to assist.
Before the funds are allocated, there must be a clear picture of the actual situation in the municipalities, added Kamenov. In his words, it is necessary to conduct a national inventory of the equipment, licenses, and infrastructure available to municipalities, the cybersecurity measures they are implementing, what they have already secured funding for, and what they still need. The national programme must provide the basic technological, licensing, and protective environment that each municipality should have, he argued.
The Cybersecurity Act and the Ordinance on Minimum Network Security Requirements clearly stipulate what municipalities must do, added Elena Mayor Dilyan Mlazev. He underscored that local administrations must comply with these rules. According to him, it is very important for municipal leadership to be familiar with and aware of the need to implement network security policies. This often involves significant costs, but the integrity and security of data must be guaranteed, because a data breach could seriously compromise both the municipality’s services and operations, as well as the personal and other types of data that are stored and processed, Mlazev argued.
In his words, small municipalities face the greatest challenges in this regard, as they very often lack IT specialists altogether, or if they do have any, they are more attracted by salaries in the private sector. As a result, administrative staff are forced to juggle multiple responsibilities, act as makeshift IT specialists, and take on these tasks, but that is not a good solution, Mlazev said.
NAMRB Executive Director Silvia Georgieva said the Association proposes the creation of a pilot regional centre for shared IT services among several municipalities. The idea is for several municipalities to share the implementation of the project, not administrative authority. Each mayor, secretary, or competent authority retains their powers and responsibilities, Georgieva explained. A lead municipality must be designated to provide the employer and administrative framework, while the others would participate through an intermunicipal agreement and receive an agreed-upon set of services. A complete set of documents outlining how this could be implemented has already been developed, Georgieva said.
Georgieva added that the NAMRB will now send letters to all mayors describing the concept, what is expected of the lead municipality, and what types of documents those who join must provide. She added that before proceeding with the project, information will be gathered on the individual municipalities: what internal resources they have, what tasks they have outsourced to external contractors, which systems are critical to them, and where the gaps lie. A sort of catalog of shared services will then be created.
Preliminary estimates indicate that approximately EUR 250,000 will be needed, with this amount including the salaries of five IT specialists for one year. The idea is for the mayor of the lead municipality to serve as their employer and to specify very precisely how others will use their services. If the State provides the necessary funds, they should be allocated specifically to the lead municipality. The other option is for the participating municipalities to cover the costs themselves, since they are already spending money on IT services from outside companies and on purchasing equipment, Georgieva explained.
The 2026 Annual Meeting of Local Authorities in Bulgaria takes place in Albena from October 11 to 13, bringing together representatives of municipalities, central government, business, academia and international partners. It marks the 30th anniversary of NAMRB’s establishment and the 20th anniversary of the founding of NAMRB-Activ. The programme focuses on digital transformation and cybersecurity, the well-being of children and families, the new municipal household waste fee model, the quality and financing of municipal investments, municipal involvement in education management, and preparedness for climate risks and disasters.
The Bulgarian News Agency is a media partner of the event.
Association of Municipalities Insists on National Programme for Digital Transformation, Cybersecurity of Municipalities 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-10-11 15:29:00
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