Sunny Beach, Bulgaria – At the onset of the tourist season, hoteliers in Sunny Beach are staging protests due to prolonged delays in payments under a government humanitarian program designed to accommodate Ukrainian refugees.
The Ministry of Tourism has not disbursed funds for nine months, leaving many hoteliers facing financial ruin.
Some hoteliers report being owed between BGN 2-3 million, a debt that threatens to push their businesses into bankruptcy. Since the program’s inception, delays in payments have been a recurring issue, but the current situation has reached a critical point.
“The program is constantly extended, we are fair to the state and we continue to work. The only problem is that the state does not send us money. We haven’t received funds for nine months now; we just can’t stand it”.
“There must be some adequate pay,” one of the protesting hoteliers said, urging Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov and the Ministry of Tourism to take immediate action.
Violeta Galeva, another hotelier, criticized the system’s inefficiencies. “The system used to help refugees is confused. Across Western Europe, they are only supported if they work. We have the opposite – if they start work, they can no longer stay in the program,” she explained, highlighting a fundamental flaw in the current policy.
Elena Andonova, who is hosting around 1,000 refugees in the Burgas region, emphasized the urgent need for government intervention.
“There are about 7,000 refugees in the Burgas region, I have about 1,000 people. We need to be paid attention in an emergency order and a payment must be made. Otherwise, we will have to explain to these people that they have to vacate our bases, but this is not an easy process,” Andonova stated.
The Minister of Tourism, Zaritsa Dinkova, responded to the growing unrest by announcing that approximately BGN 9 million had been urgently transferred yesterday.
These funds are expected to reach the hoteliers’ accounts shortly, covering the period from November to February. This payment, however, only addresses a fraction of the total outstanding amount.
The delay in payments has created a significant strain on the hospitality industry in Sunny Beach, which is already grappling with the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hoteliers are now calling for a more streamlined and reliable payment system to ensure they can continue to support refugees without jeopardizing their businesses.
The humanitarian program was initially praised for its swift response to the influx of Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war.
However, the continued bureaucratic delays and financial mismanagement have overshadowed its successes, leading to growing frustration among those on the front lines of the crisis.
Hoteliers are demanding a more transparent and efficient process for disbursing funds.
They argue that the current system’s failures not only endanger their livelihoods but also the well-being of the refugees they are committed to helping.
As the tourist season begins, the eyes of the nation are on the government to see how it will resolve this pressing issue.
The resolution of these financial disputes is crucial, not just for the hoteliers and refugees but also for the broader economic stability of the region. With summer approaching, the need for a swift and effective response from the Ministry of Tourism has never been more urgent.
This article was created using automation and was thoroughly edited and fact-checked by one of our staff editorial members