JUSTIFICATION OF THE PROJECT

The present project of Yambol Chamber of Commerce and Industry - Yambol, with title "Forum for business partnership - Bulgaria - Turkey" has content and activities aiming at supporting and speeding up the processes of integration of Bulgaria and Turkey to EU, cross-border cooperation and stability through direct participation of the citizens and civil position on the issues of the European integration.
The project has been developed and will be implemented in partnership between Yambol Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Chambers of Commerce and Industry from Edirne and Kirklareli which have the same status according to the Turkeish legislation. As partners from Bulgarian side more two organisations will participate - the Industrial Economic Association - Yambol and Agency for Regional Development and Investments - Yambol.
After exchanged correspondence between the three organisations, a joint session of their Boards of Managers has been held on November 9th 2004 in Edirne where their Presidents signed Framework agreement for partnership for partnership for execution of the main activities by the Programme and their "complementary projects" in case they are approved.

Session of Board of managers, 09.11.04 ?.

The project sets as aim to study the state, the pace, the needs, the risks and the future development of the social and public issues and problems on the territory of Bulgaria and Turkey and more concretely - in the cross-border region of the neighbouring districts - Yambol, Edirne and Kirklareli, which coincide with specific cross-border geographic region.
The regions of Yambol, Edirne and Kirklareli are situated on both sides of the border between Bulgaria and Turkey. These three regions have very long common past dated from the anciency and pagan times to the times when these regions have been in one country. During most osf the part these three regions have been in different countries which have been in collaboration or in at enmity with each other. In this sence the time and the past has marked the way of thinking of the people and the relations between them.
Today the both countries - Bulgaria and Turkey, respectively the three regions, are in stages of development which are to a great extend similar but also different.
The common characteristics in the development of the countries and the regions could be indetified in the following:
· Republic form of government;
· Striving to democratic form of government with participation of the civil society;
· Membership in common military-political union - NATO;
· Striving to market economy;
· Free economic initiative;
· Aiming at membership in the common social-economic structures of EU;
· Aiming at common union in the framework of Black See economic zone for development.
The differences in the development of the regions are determined by:
· Different identity in the culture, ??????, self-consciousness and self-determination of the person;
· The main part of the population in Turkey, in Edirne and Kirklareli, follow the Islam religion, and in Bulgaria and Yambol county - Christianity. The mosques are predominated in Edirne and Kirklareli region, and in Yambol region - the Christian churches.
· There are differences in the structures of the local state authorities and local self-government;
· Differcences in the educatinal system and vocational training;
· Different position in the achieved integration into NATO and EU. Turkey is member of NATO long time ago, with experience in the collaboration with the other members of the pact and Bulgaria is a new member. Bulgaria received invitation for EU membership and has achievements in the pre-accession preparation, has defined date for signing the contract for full membership, and Turkey has will start the negotiations in next year.
· Differences in the built infrastructure, industrialisation, level of conformity of the national legislations to the European, civil rights, ecology and civil society.
· Inadequate mutual awareness and knowledge of the citizens from the both sides of the border of the state and development of the society, economy, culture, habits, strivings, capacity and opportunities of the people from both region.
The thematic fields of the analysis and research of the state and opportunities for complete development of the both regions through partnership result from the formulating of the good practices and the progress of each of the regions and they to be implemented in the neighbouring one as well as for impact concerning the mutual recognition of the civil rights and self-determination of the people related to nationality, economic freedom, ethnos and religion in the neighbouring regions.
The project foresees the necessary information for the outlined problem fields in the development of the both regions to be presented during the forums planned - international conference and plenary sessions with experts, specialists and public figures from both countries which to be used as basis for broad discussion during the forums as well as outside them. On this basis a common memorandum to be developed by the project partners and to be handed to the respective state and public bodies and proposals for its including in the plans for strategic development of the regions to be taken as well as for undertaking of concrete actions.
The study, analysis and discussion of the problems will be directed preliminary through selection in the following areas:

· Economic development, entrepreneurship and partnership in the region;
· Joint public-institutional structures for identifying of problems and generating of proposals and recommendations for their solving;
· Mutual assistance in the EU integration.

This way will be indentified and addressed the niches and the problems that could be solved through the joint actions of the NGOs and state sector in the both countries and regions as well as the resources needed to be determined.
We consider the following several circumstances would be especially useful for the project implementation:

· The traditionally active and fruitful activity of the three non-governmental organisations - the chambers of commerce and industry in Yambol, Edirne and Kirklareli between themselves as well between them and the governmental sector.

· The expert, material, informational and human resources the three organisations have at their disposal - more than 50 people staff and more than 100 experts in different areas of the public life. The three organisations are equiped with varied office-equipment, well furnished office, informational data bases and traditional skills in organising of forums. These resources will be placed at the disposal and for the aims of the project free of charge and in the form of co-financing.

Press-conference under project of YCCI

· The established Euro Info Centre BG811 Yambol under the programme of DG Enterprise of the European Commission which host is Yambol Chamber of Commerce and Industry. This is the only one of total 320 Euro Info Centres in the main cities of Europe on the territory of the cross-border region (in this part of Turkey and of Bulgaria there is no other) and its whole resources - expert and informational - will be placed for the aims of this project.

· The especial proximity between the three regions. The distance between Yambol and Edirne and between Yambol and Kirklareli is about 130 km. In the next spring (2005) the newly built border check station Lesovo - Hamsabeili will be opened which will further facilitate the communications in the cross-border region.

An important circumstance in the justification of the expediency of the project implementation is that a study of the chambers of commerce in Yambol, Edirne and Kirklareli shows that about 55% of the population of Yambol region and about 85% of the population of the regions of Edirne and Kirklareli - Turkey, have never visited their neighbours in Bulgaria and receive limited information for the pace of the development of the society. This circumstance is especially alarming and that is why it is necessary to be studied and removed the factors and reasons for the lack of complete communication and partnership especially in the cross-border regions and for which the partnership between the business circles could become engine for the rest areas of the public life.