Vratsa District is located in the Northwestern part of Bulgaria, on an area of 3619.7 sq. km and a population of 152,813 people (Census '2021). The regional and municipal center of Vratsa occupies an area of 697 sq. km and has a population of 61,742 people. The natural population growth in the district is permanently negative, and in 2023 it was -10.9‰.
Located at the foot of the Vratsa Balkan, Vratsa is the starting point for many caves, waterfalls and interesting rock formations. The most famous among them are the Ledenika cave, the Skaklya waterfall and the Vratsata pass. In Vratsa is kept the Rogozen treasure, which is the largest Thracian treasure. Every year the town hosts the Botev Days, culminating in the fireworks rally on June 1, held on Hristo Botev Square, as well as the nationwide pilgrimage on June 2 on Okolchitsa Peak. The motto of Vratsa is "A city like the Balkan - ancient and young".
Transport and infrastructure
Two European transport corridors pass through the Vratsa region – Corridor No. 4 (Dresden/Nuremberg – Istanbul) is a convenient connection to the capital and Danube Bridge 2, as well as Corridor No. 7 (Rhine River – Main River – Danube River). The main 7th railway line (Sofia-Vidin) passes through Vratsa, which is electrified and doubled to the east after Vratsa station. There are well-defined passenger and freight stations in the city. There is also public bus and trolleybus transport, and one of the main aspirations of the Municipality is to create an integrated "green" public transport.
The density of the road and railway network in the district of Vratsa is close to the national average, but the quality of the roads remains extremely low. The share of motorways and first-class roads in the total road network of the district is 9.9%, compared to 18.5% in the country. The share of road surfaces in good condition is 34.3%, compared to 41.1% in the country.
Economics
After 1944, Vratsa became a major industrial center with the construction of factories from many industries, betting heavily on textile processing, winemaking, a cement plant and most of all the giant chemical plant for nitrogen fertilizer "Himko", which was a major source of revenue for the municipality. At the same time, the policy is the creation of local personnel through the creation of specialized schools and branches of universities to prepare personnel for work in the newly built factories. This, in turn, led to a boom in population and living standards, which reached its peak in 1989, when Vratsa approached 80,000 inhabitants.
In 2003, the fertilizer plant "Himko" finally stopped its activities, as well as a large part of the larger pollutants, which sharply improved the environmental situation in the city. In this new environment, the development of Vratsa as a tourist destination became one of the main priorities of the municipality of Vratsa, but in the meantime the quality and standard of living fell sharply due to high unemployment and low wages.
To date, the number of non-financial enterprises in the district is 38 per thousand people (compared to 60 per thousand people in the country), with 93.6% of the enterprises having up to 9 employees. The economy of Vratsa is distinguished by a prominent industrial profile, with the largest share being the manufacturing industry, but the Kozloduy NPP should not be missed. Among the leading enterprises of the manufacturing industry are the cement plant "Holcim", "MD Electronic" - production of data cables and electronic components for automotive manufacturers, "Lesto Product" - metal products for machinery and equipment, "Centromet AD - Vratsa" - production of castings. There are also several large manufacturers of textiles and clothing in Vratsa, including "RBO", "Chimbidium", "Yoger-M" - production and trade of women's ready-to-wear, "Vratsa style" - production of clothes on toll for export mainly to Western Europe, as well as those from the food industry - "Lalov and Vachev" (meat products) and "SD Digant - Dimitrov and Grigorov" (bread and pasta), "Zhitara" (bread and pasta), "BEANA" (soft drinks). In 2022, a production base of the manufacturer of rubber and plastic products "Teklas - Bulgaria" was opened in Vratsa.
On the territory of Vratsa there are three separate industrial zones, with built infrastructure (road, electrical, water supply and sewerage and telecommunication) and connection with the railway line.
Investment
The costs for the acquisition of fixed assets in the district are constantly growing, reaching BGN 517 million in 2022, compared to BGN 378 mln. for the previous year. Foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2022 shrank to EUR 112 million compared to EUR 193 million in 2021, most of them are realized in the municipality of Vratsa.
In 2022, compared to 2021, the turnover of non-financial enterprises (BGN 5.4 million for 2021 and BGN 9.2 million for 2022) and production (BGN 4.5 million for 2021 and BGN 8.3 million for 2022) almost doubled. The share of export revenues in the net sales revenues of non-financial corporations is 3.90%.
Vratsa is also among the districts with the best absorption of EU funds. As of June 30, 2023, the value of the amounts paid to beneficiaries under the operational programs reaches BGN 3545 per capita (compared to BGN 2836 per capita in the country). Within the district, the municipalities of Vratsa (over BGN 5,000) and Mezdra (over BGN 3,000) absorb the most funds.
Labour market. Income.
The gross domestic product per capita in Vratsa District is 21818.00 BGN in 2022, and the average annual gross salary of employees under employment contract reached BGN 19,441 and is the third highest in the country (after those in Sofia and Varna), mainly because of the employees at Kozloduy NPP. The average monthly pension is BGN 786 and is also higher than in most districts – according to this indicator, Vratsa District ranks eighth in the country after Sofia-city, Burgas, Pernik, Stara Zagora, Varna, Kyustendil and Sofia-region. However, the poverty rate remains high. In 2022, 31.5% of the population of Vratsa district lived below the national poverty line, compared to 22.9% nationally.
The share of the workforce with secondary education is relatively high (62.1%). In 2022, the share of the population aged 25 to 64 with higher education decreased to 15.6%, compared to 29.8% nationally, but that of the population with primary and lower education also shrank to 22.5%, compared to 16.0% nationally.
The share of the working-age population in the district decreased and was lower than the national average – 57.3%, compared to 58.5% nationally. Economic activity continues to grow, but is still significantly lower than the average – 67.8% in the district compared to 73.6% in the country.
The employment rate in Vratsa district was 61.4%, compared to 70.4% nationally, and the unemployment rate was 10.7%, compared to 5.2% nationally.
Taxes
The Municipality of Vratsa proposes a tax policy aimed at improving the business environment. The average level of local taxes in the municipalities in Vratsa district is relatively low. The amount of the retail tax rate on average for the district (BGN 6.84 per sq. m) is almost twice lower than the national average (BGN 13.04 per sq. m). Taxes on vehicles, on the transfer of ownership and on taxi transport are also lower. Only the average tax rate on immovable non-residential properties of legal entities in the district is higher than the national average.
Education
The indicators of Vratsa district in the field of primary and secondary education remain relatively good, but the results are relatively low. The correspondence between vocational education and the profile of the economy in the district increased in 2023 and is close to the national average. The results of students from Vratsa district are relatively weak – in 2023, the average grade of the national external assessment in mathematics after grade VII is 26.7 points (vs. 35.3 points nationally), the average grade in the matriculation exams in Bulgarian language and literature is "Good" 3.58 (vs. "Good" 3.93 in the country), and the poor grades are 24.5% (vs. 17.9% in the country). The number of students in the district is 8.3 per thousand people of the population, compared to 33.2 per thousand people in the country in 2022.
Health care
Vratsa ranks among the districts with the least developed healthcare (before the districts of Yambol and Sliven) in 2022. The average life expectancy is 70.5 years (compared to 71.9 years in the country). The share of the health insured is traditionally higher than the national average – 95.2%, compared to 93.5% nationally. Healthcare in the district suffers from a shortage of doctors (both general practitioners and specialists) and hospital beds.
Security and justice
Registered crimes against the person and property are increasing and Vratsa is now the district with the highest number of crimes against the population (ahead of Montana district) – 16.4 per thousand people (vs. 11.6 per thousand people in the country). However, their detection rate remains higher than the average – 55% (vs. 49% nationally) in 2022.
The workload of criminal judges in the district is increasing and in 2022 it is slightly above the average with 10.7 cases per month per judge (compared to 10.1 cases in the country), but this does not affect the speed of justice – the share of criminal cases closed within 3 months continues to be the highest in the country – 97% (compared to 89% on average for the districts), and the number of pending cases is the lowest – 4% (compared to 12% in the country).
