Minister Vigenin presented the proposals for amendments to the Diplomatic Service Act
20 February 2014 News
Minister of Foreign Affairs Kristian Vigenin presented today to the media the highlights in the prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs draft bill, amending the Diplomatic Service Act.The proposed changes are the result of several months work of the specially created working group, consulted with the employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, taking also into account the opinions of our diplomatic missions abroad, said Minister Vigenin. The project is about to go through public hearing, to be discussed in the Public Council at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and coordinated with the competent institutions and departments.
The main objective of the proposed amendments is to strengthen the professional and expert practices in the diplomatic service by creating conditions for sustainable career development and by restricting the so-called political quota among the heads of missions by reducing it from 20 to 10 percent, Kristian Vigenin explained. According to him, the restriction for external appointments will happen naturally without unnecessary legal problems, as it gives a period of three years in which this can be implemented. The mass recruitment of people outside the system was made in 2012 and their term will expire in 2016, he explained.
Another important goal of the changes in the act is to create conditions for a more effective involvement of the MFA with the problems of Bulgarian citizens, who are in emergency situations. The bill proposes the budget of the Ministry to provide resources for assisting Bulgarian citizens abroad, and the terms of allocating and restoring them will be be regulated by the Council of Ministers . According to Minister Vigenin, this is a necessary measure, but the regime for the granting of these funds will be sufficiently restrictive because it is not possible to provide financial assistance in each case.
Among the main changes the Foreign Minister mentioned the creation of conditions for a more effective maintenance and management of the state properties which are under the MFA management. We offer 50% of the funds received from the sale or rental of property to enter the ministry's budget and to be used specifically for the maintenance of buildings, he said. It is also proposed to restore the position of Administrative Secretary, who will haveclearly defined powers and functions.
The amendments are also aimed at guaranteeing a sustainable career development of the employees. The role of the Career Commission is enhanced and it becomes almost impossible for the Minister himself to decide entirely on these issues, Kristian Vigenin said. In addition, certain limitations are proposed in order to prevent a subjective attitude of the Minister towards a particular employee. The rise in rank as a reward twice consecutively is prohibited. The possibility of two consecutive early promotions is removed from the democratic service act.
Minister Vigenin also explained that certain incentives are proposed for accepting a term in countries with high risk to life and health. The proposal is two years of service in such a mission to count for three years of diplomatic service, as well as an option to get allowances for travelling to Bulgaria twice a year.
Changes are proposed also for the Diplomatic Institute and the State Cultural Institute to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Diplomatic Institute is envisaged to become “Diplomatic Academy” due to the planned increase it is educational activities and joint projects with universities. As regards the State Institute for Culture, the term "state" will be removed from the title as the major functions in the field of cultural policy are responsibility of the Ministry of Culture. The Cultural Institute will continue to support the diplomatic missions abroad and to maintain the artwork collection of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Bulgaria.
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