“The implementation of responsible business conduct standards and preparation for the new supply chain requirements should be viewed as an opportunity rather than yet another administrative burden.”
This was stated by Stanislav Popdonchev, Vice President of the Bulgarian Industrial Association (BIA), during the Green Transition Forum 6.0, held at the Sofia Event Center. The forum is organized by Dir.bg, with the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency (BTA) among its media partners.
According to Popdonchev, the implementation of the OECD Responsible Business Conduct standards offers at least three strategic benefits for Bulgarian companies: improved access to global value chains, better ESG ratings and easier access to investment, as well as enhanced risk management and trust-building.
At the same time, he noted that despite these potential benefits, the reality for small and medium-sized enterprises in Bulgaria remains challenging. He pointed to several significant barriers, including regulatory overload and administrative pressure, a lack of administrative and expert capacity, the costs associated with certification and auditing, and the risk of sanctions, unpredictable requirements, and misuse of grievance mechanisms.
Popdonchev also highlighted that BusinessEurope advocates three key principles at the European level. The first is proportionality, meaning that guidelines and regulations should take company size into account. The second is the prevention of overregulation, ensuring that national governments do not introduce stricter requirements when transposing EU legislation. The third principle is maintaining the competitiveness of European companies in the global marketplace.
