National early warning system to be expanded

The Council of Ministers adopted a project financed with funds under the Environment Operational Programme for the expansion of the national early warning system, which notifies the population in case of national disasters and threats at the municipality level and and notifies the executive authorities, said caretaker Environment and Water Minister Rositsa Karamfilova at a briefing in the Council of Ministers with Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev.

The project is worth BGN 48,485,086, with one hundred percent grant funding. The funds will be allocated to the Ministry of Interior's  Communication and Information Systems Directorate and are aimed at modernizing the national early warning system, informed Minister Karamfilova. The early warning system notifies about 39% of the population of Bulgaria. With its modernization and development, the new municipal population awareness centres will cover just over 51%  of the population, said the Minister.

Karamfilova added that the system is key and enables preventive actions related to potential disasters. This, at the national level, is the first step the country is taking to modernize this system with Operational Programmr funds. For the next programming period, additional funds have been pledged so that 100% of the popoulation can be covered, Minister Karamfilova pointed out.