Report of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development - 2010
BULGARIA
LITTLE OR NO ENFORCEMENT: Three cases, one pending and two concluded. One
investigation.
Share of world exports is 0.1%.
Foreign bribery cases or
investigations: Of the two concluded
cases, one relates to alleged bribery of a border officer and the other of a customs officer. Both cases
were terminated. With regard to the investigation, this concerns allegations that a
Bulgarian paid a bribe of US $270,000 to a permanent secretary in the Ministry
of Health of Zambia. The investigation has not yet been concluded because, in spite of the many
letters of reminder from Bulgarian authorities, the Republic of Zambia has not provided the
required help in the pre-trial proceedings commenced in 2008. Meanwhile, in
Zambia in February 2007, a former high-ranking government official was
sentenced to five years in prison for receiving bribes, the largest of which was allegedly
given by a Bulgarian pharmaceutical company.
The Zambian official is a former secretary of the
country’s Health Ministry and was found guilty on three charges, including one that he
received a bribe of around US $250,000 from a Bulgarian company that wanted
permission to import the medicine
Elexir-9 into Zambia.
Domestic bribery by foreign
companies: None known.
Inadequacies in legal framework:
There are inadequacies including lack of
criminal liability for companies and complicated, over-formalised procedures.
Inadequacies in enforcement
system: The inadequacies
include lack of training of investigators and lack of public awareness-raising.
There are also significant delays in court proceedings.
Access to information about
cases and investigations: There
is access to numbers of bribery cases but without separate information on foreign bribery cases. There is
no access to details of cases and disclosure may be made subject to penalties.
Bulgaria’s National Prosecution Office annually publishes on the Internet a
report with information on
bribery cases, including pre-trial proceedings, prosecutions brought to trial,
number of persons sentenced and pardons.
Requirements of export credit
agencies: Export credit
agencies do not require no-bribery commitments or compliance programmes. Export credit insurance is
provided by the Bulgarian Agency for Export Insurance (BAEZ) and according to its
general rules for insurance of credits and fi nancing, the BAEZ has not
established any such obligations.
Facilitation payments: Prohibited by law.
Recommendations: Provide training of investigative bodies. Introduce
tighter international cooperation.
For the full report file please visit: http://www.transparency.org/content/download/53670/856410/file/2010+PROGRESS+REPORT.pdf
TI Bulgaria