Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the first Bulgarian paperless institution
06 March 2012 News
“The move to e-administration in the future is inexorable and there is no point in resisting this,” Foreign Minister Nickolay Mladenov said, presenting the new electronic documentation system at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which at the beginning of 2012 became the first fully paperless institution in Bulgaria.
Minister Mladenov outlined the main advantages of the new system, which has led to the optimisation of workflow and rapid and economical processing of documentation. He highlighted some of the advantages – saving on paper and other supplies to the tune of about 100 000 leva a year, the movement of documents in the system in real time, the creation of an entirely cyber archive which allows easy access to stored documents, a high level of security of the system and the ability to exchange documents electronically with other institutions.
The next important stage in the process of introducing e-governance is the use of the system in the work of consular services, Minister Mladenov said. This step will lead to a qualitatively new level of service to citizens, giving them quick access to services, reducing the workload of the administrative staff and eliminating any risk of possible abuse, he said.
Minister Mladenov said that the electronic system was currently being being tested in Bulgarian missions abroad, and after finalisation of this process and its full commissioning into service, will enable consular services to be extended to places where Bulgaria has no diplomatic representation.