Page 18 - Sofia Globe News Today

New passenger car registrations in Bulgaria in January and February 2021 were 20.6 per cent lower than those in the first two months of 2020, according to provisional figures released on March 17 by the European Automobile Manufacturers Association, ACEA. In January and February 2021, new passenger car registrations in Bulgaria added up to 3429, down from 4318 in January and February 2020. In February 2021, there were 1660 new passenger car registrations, a decrease of 16.5 per cent compared wi...

The European Commission set out on March 17 its proposal for the creation of a Digital Green Certificate to facilitate safe free movement inside the European Union during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Digital Green Certificate will be a proof that a person has been vaccinated against Covid-19, received a negative test result or recovered from Covid-19. It will be available, free of charge, in digital or paper format. It will include a QR code to ensure security and authenticity of the certificate....

Bulgaria’s voters go to the polls on April 4 2021 in regular elections for the 45th National Assembly, the country’s unicameral Parliament. The official campaigning period is from March 5 to April 2. This is The Sofia Globe’s factfile. Some of the key numbers and rules: Eligible to vote: About 6.73 million people, according to provisional figures from the Central Election Commission (CEC). Bulgarian citizens over the age of 18, resident in the country or abroad, are eligible to vote. Peop...

In an effort to boost vaccination rates among a skeptical public, Bulgaria has opened up COVID-19 inoculations to all who want them — with many waiting in line for hours to receive a first dose.

Bulgaria’s Central Election Commission (CEC) opened on February 8 the registration of political parties and coalitions for participation in the April 4 National Assembly elections. In recent years, traditionally the first to register was Prime Minister Boiko Borissov’s GERB party, with the documents being delivered by the then-head of the party’s election campaign staff, Tsvetan Tsvetanov. Tsvetanov, who now has his own Republicans for Bulgaria party, had intended to cock a snook at GERB ...

Of 9876 tests done in the past 24 hours, 719 – about 7.28 per cent – proved positive. The number of patients in hospital rose by 68 to a total of 2969, with 284 in intensive care, an increase of five. Twenty-eight medical personnel tested positive in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to date to 9587. To date, a total of 221 266 cases of new coronavirus have been confirmed in Bulgaria, counting in those who have died, those who have recovered from the virus and the active cases. There ar...

Pupils in the seventh, eighth and 12th grades returned to schools in Bulgaria on February 4 for two weeks of in-person classes, after which they will rotate back to distance learning for a fortnight. This adds about 170 000 pupils and 30 000 teachers to the in-person education process at schools, with close to 740 000 pupils and teachers already at school every day, after pupils in the first to fourth grades returned to school in early January. In Bulgaria’s capital city Sofia, 1700 pupils su...

The volume of retail trade in Bulgaria in December 2020 was 12 per cent lower than in December 2019, the second-largest drop in the European Union on an annual basis, according to figures released on February 4 by EU statistics agency Eurostat. Against the background of the Covid-19 crisis, the figure for December was the latest in a succession of decreases in the volume of the retail trade in Bulgaria on an annual basis. In July, the decrease was 17.5 per cent, in August, 12.2 per cent, in Sep...

Foreigners with permanent or long-term residence in Bulgaria on the basis of study, work, family or other reasons are entitled to receive vaccinations against Covid-19, Chief State Health Inspector Angel Kunchev told a news conference on February 4. Foreigners in the country without such status and who wanted to be vaccinated would have to wait until all Bulgarian citizens had been catered for under the national vaccination plan. Earlier, the Bulgarian Medical Association said that anyone in Bu...

Thirty-six people in Bulgaria who had tested positive for Covid-19 died in the past day, bringing the country’s death toll linked to the disease to a total of 9178, the national information system daily report said on February 3. Of 11 452 tests done in the past 24 hours, a total of 967 – about 8.4 per cent – proved positive. To date, 220 547 cases of new coronavirus have been confirmed in Bulgaria. There are 20 885 active cases, a decrease of 581 in the past 24 hours. The national inform...