Bulgaria has received an average score of 3.28 for its care for children over the past 15 years, according to the Report Card 2026, published by the National Network for Children. The report was presented and discussed at a meeting of the National Assembly’s Committee on Labour, Demographic and Social Policy on Wednesday.
The report summarizes data provided by sectoral ministries and draws on independent studies where official data are unavailable, Maria Brestnichka of the National Network for Children’s Secretariat said. She noted that the average score indicates that the State could do much more. Over the past 15 years, several major reforms and plans have been outlined, but from today’s perspective, they appear to amount to a series of somewhat fragmented measures and sectoral systems that fail to coordinate with one another.
Bulgaria’s child population has fallen by 80,000 over the past 15 years, equivalent to a year and three months without any children being born, Brestnichka said. She added that more than 30% of children live at risk of poverty and social exclusion, a figure that has changed very little over the years. Families with many children are the poorest group in Bulgaria, even poorer than pensioners, she said.
Brestnichka reported that child mortality has halved over the past 15 years. However, in the past year, a child born in Razgrad was six times more likely to die during their first year of life than a child born in Sofia, she noted. More children are now enrolled in school, but the education system tends to reproduce inequality rather than compensate for it, she added.
One in three children reports having been a victim of violence or abuse, said Donika Koleva of the Concordia Bulgaria Foundation, a member of the National Network for Children. She noted that the Report Card 2026 gives Bulgaria an average score of 3.35 for child protection from violence over the past 15 years. Koleva stressed the need for a national policy to prevent violence in schools.
Alexandrina Dimitrova, chair of the National Network for Children’s Management Board, identified the closure of large state-run institutions for children with disabilities and children deprived of parental care as a major achievement of the past 15 years. She said that only two such institutions remain, in Pleven and Varna, and expressed hope that they would also be closed by the end of the year. Dimitrova drew attention to the fact that twice as many children currently live in residential care facilities as in foster families. She called for a renewed debate on foster care in Bulgaria, an end to project-based funding, and a clear strategy for recruiting, retaining, and supporting foster families.
Bulgaria Receives Average Score of 3.28 for Its Care for Children over Past 15 Years – National Network for Children 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-10-14 20:29:59
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