Search

Farms receive a significant part of their support through direct payments. They guarantee a definite level of economic security for farmers by providing minimum income in periods of economic crisis, climate change, unfavourable market conditions, etc. The topics of direct payments’ level and distribution remain significant. Within the new CAP 2020+ the relevance of these studies is reinforced, as one of the main objectives is to support sufficiently reliable agricultural incomes and sustainability in the EU. In this relation, the aim of this article is to indicate the level, the distribution of the support and the range of supported farmers through direct payments. Research methods: The wide range of relevant research methods gives the opportunity for analysis and assessment of the farms’ level and trends – system and comparative analysis; method of indication; expert method; descriptive analysis; statistical grouping method; graphical method; inductive and deductive methods for analysis and generalizations forming. The analysis includes a research of the level and dynamics of several indicators, unified in two groups:- For assessment of farms support degree; - For assessment of direct payments distribution between the farms The following conclusions were made on the basis of the analysis:- A considerable financial resource, which our country does not possess, has been absorbed by the farms under direct payments;- About 1/3 of farms have been supported;- Unequal distribution of the support between beneficiaries – accumulation of significant part of the funds for the large holdings, small or insignificant part for the support of small farms; - Insignificant positive change in the actual program period of CAP (2014-2020), compared to the previous period, orientation to more balanced and equal distribution of the support between farms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the article is to analyze the main trends in the labor force development in agriculture over the last ten years at national and regional level and to draw up the subsequent conclusions and recommendations. Given the growing role of quantitative and qualitative composition of agricultural workers, the increasing need for a thorough study of these complex processes is justified. On the basis of comparative analyzes between Bulgaria and the European countries the general and different characteristics of the labor potential in the agricultural sector are revealed. Emphasis is placed on the employment factors of young farmers, the effects of special incentives to attract highly qualified staff. Estimates of changes in the age structure of employed agricultural workers towards the end of the next programming period (2027) were made. Official data from EUROSTAT, NSI, MAF and others sources were used. The index, variance, comparative, descriptive analysis and graphical method are applied. On the basis of the analysis carried out, the relevant conclusions were made. The problems related to overcoming the outflow of a viable workforce from the sector over the next decade and in the longer term will be on the agenda both in Bulgaria and in Europe. Although the share of young agrarian managers in Bulgaria is higher than the average for European countries, their absolute decrease indicates serious problems related to the attraction and lasting retention of young people in the sector. The main conclusions show that financial incentives of the various measures and schemes to support their activities are essential to promote a sustainable interest in agricultural production and the penetration of more people into the sector. Moreover, the positive impact of incentives is much more pronounced among those who are descendants of the farm as compared to other people. It is the local farmers that can be considered as the socio-economic unit with the most stable entrepreneurial and labor potential for preserving the farm. The main group of reasons that dissuade people, especially young people, from engaging in farming and acting in the direction of ending employment in the sector is related to the low level of agricultural incomes, the low level of mechanization predominantly in vulnerable sectors, the quality of life in rural areas, limited access to credit and land purchase, uncertain market prices and barriers to commodity production, unacceptable technical, technological, ergonomic, etc. working conditions compared to other industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ongoing structural changes in agricultural holdings after the EU accession of Bulgaria provoke interest as well as the main factors determining this changes. The target of the present article is to outline the main directions of organizational and economic restructuring of Bulgarian agriculture within EU CAP. Research methods - a set of actual research methods, giving opportunity for analysis and assessment of the state, determining the factor relations and trends in farms development: system and comparative analysis; monographic method, expert assessment, method of statistical groupings, graphical method etc. The structural changes have been analyzed. The main research results are: Sustainable trend of farms number diminution. The reduction processes are most dynamic • for the small farms; • Positive trend of farms consolidation, occurring faster than for some other EU countries; • Conservation of the non-rational organizational and economic structure of agriculture - the bipolar model of farms - dominating share of small farms of individual owners and small number of large economic structures of legal entities. There is still a lack of middle layer of medium-sized farms; • Extremely low density of livestock-breeding in comparison to the EU average and the average for the monitored EU member-states; • Positive trend to increase of the level of specialization and concentration of the production, improvement of the farms market orientation; • Positive trend of decrease of the share of farms, non-eligible for SAPS payments, but their share still remains high; • Despite the increase of the average economic potential of the farms in the country, it remains lower than the average for EU; • Agricultural holdings in Bulgaria are low diversified to other activities with a decreasing trend, which leads to a restriction of the opportunities of revenues increase and to a risk of incomes destabilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research is dedicated to the analysis and evaluation of the transformation of intellectual capital (IC) properties in the pre-war period of the country. The study enhances and categorizes contemporary indicators for assessing intellectual capital properties, classifies indicators based on their qualitative impact on the level of intellectual capital, normalizes indicators for constructing radar charts, and determines the level of intellectual capital in Ukraine. The research identifies the impact level of the dynamics of intellectual capital properties on the country's GDP changes. Methodology: To achieve the set goal, the study employs the dialectical method, analysis, and synthesis (investigation of human, organizational, and structural (client) capitals and changes in their properties), graphical method (for illustrating research results); system-structural and expert analysis (to determine the impacts of changes in intellectual capital properties on GDP). Scientific novelty lies in determining the influence of transformations in intellectual capital properties on GDP changes to define a strategy for optimizing the country's intellectual capital structure. Practical significance involves recommending indicators for assessing IC properties for further development of incentive measures using digital technologies and artificial intelligence to enhance the structure of intellectual capital, providing grounds for developing a strategy for IC optimization in the country.

The aim of the study is to define the category, develop a methodological approach and assess the competitiveness of agricultural holdings in Bulgaria. Methods used: Principal Components Method; analytical method; method of statistical groupings; graphical method, variation analysis, comparative analysis, descriptive analysis, etc. In theoretical-methodological, methodological and practical-applied aspect the main issues of the competitiveness of agricultural holdings are considered. Based on a critical review of the scientific literature, a working definition of the competitiveness of agricultural holdings has been proposed. A holistic approach to assessing the competitiveness of agricultural holdings in Bulgaria has been developed. A system of criteria is substantiated and a system of adequate indicators for their measurement is proposed. An integral indicator is derived - an index of competitiveness, which allows for comparisons of different types of agricultural holdings. An assessment of the level of competitiveness of agricultural holdings with different specialization in Bulgaria has been made. The results show that the overall competitiveness of agricultural holdings in the country is at an average level. There are some differences in the level of competitiveness between farms of different specialisation. Above average is the level of competitiveness of farms specialized in pigs, poultry and rabbits; followed by those in field crops and vegetable farms. Below the average level is the competitiveness of farms specialized in the cultivation of perennial crops and those with grazing animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]