Between 100 and 200 people are applying on a daily basis for certificates proving their Bulgarian descent.

 

This was revealed by Ivanka Slavcheva, a chief expert at the State Agency for Bulgarians Abroad, at the opening of the sixth session of the world parliament of Bulgarians.

 

The main topic of the two-day forum will be state of the Bulgarian diasporas and organisation in different countries, Darik radio informs.

 

The majority of the applicants is constituted by Bulgarians from Ukraine, Moldova and Macedonia.

 

According to Slavcheva, there are 850 Bulgarian communities around the world with which the agency keeps in touch.

 

The majority of the organisations are located in the US, Canada, Spain, Germany and the United Kingdom, while one of the most active societies is based in Australia.

 

The chairperson of the world parliament of Bulgarians, Prof. Plamen Pavlov, said that the agency is functioning according to its limited capacity and has mainly coordinating functions.

 

According to him, the problem stems from the lack of strategic state policy, calling on the Bulgarian state to be more active in the help towards its fellow nationals abroad.

 

In his words, around 12 000 Bulgarians live in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine, who were not aided by the Bulgarian state in any way, with several families issued with tourist visas.

 

Pavlov thinks that at the moment it is easier to settle in Bulgaria if one is a refugee rather than a member of the Bulgarian diaspora.

 

The Bulgarian state is very passive, was the opinion expressed by a Bulgarian from Molvoda.

 

In his words, 24 000 Bulgarians live in the Taraclia district, while their number in the whole of Moldova is 90 000.

 

Despite these numbers, the Bulgarian state has not responded to the requests for the establishing of a consulate in Taraclia. Furthermore, the Bulgarian embassy lacks a cultural-economic centre.

 

In all settlements with compact Bulgarian population, there are kindergartens, schools and colleges where the Bulgarian language is taught.

 

Bulgarians have tabled a bill to the Moldovan parliament on granting the district of Taraclia the status of cultural-historical region.