Direct Payments in Bulgaria – Trends and Perspectives

Абстракт

Direct payments are key component of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in Bulgaria. During 2007–2013 they led to serious changes in specialization and concentration in Bulgarian agriculture. In the period 2014–2020, around € 7.4 billion is expected to be invested in farming sector and rural areas through the CAP, of which direct payments are € 5.1 billion. The main purpose of the study is to analysise the trends in direct payments allocation and to outline the opportunities and perspectives for Bulgarian agriculture. Methodological approach includes analysis, synthesis, deduction and induction. Applied are comparative, monographic, logical, tabular and graphical method and statistical methods of analysis. In order to research the disparities in paper is used Gini coefficient as a widely applied measure of inequality. The results show that First Pillar benefits mainly larger-scale farms causing disbalances in Bulgarian agricultural sector. Small and medium sized farms receive negligible share of the financial support. The implementation of new opportunities presented by direct payments could help to decrease sectorial and structural imbalances in agriculture and to decrease the polarization of Bulgarian farms.