April 1, 2014
Frequently asked question – whom is JESSICA really for, is it not a regular EU funds program that provides financing primarily for municipal projects?
The answer is: JESSICA is an initiative that provides funding for projects both in the public and the private domain.
Public authorities in most places around the world claim a lack of money and whenever possible prefer gifts to loans – for example, European grants. For the time being, public bodies are our most active counterparts seeking JESSICA funding – many of the projects we work on in Burgas, Plovdiv, Stara Zagora, Pleven, Rousse and Varna are municipal projects 🙂
Private businesses worldwide are flexible and always need financing for their plans. In Bulgaria, however, the private sector has still to learn of loans with lower than market interest rates and above market loan duration – the JESSICA financing conditions.
Examples of private projects that could be financed under the JESSICA initiative:
– Educational Institutions – their number is growing in the country – from kindergarten through primary schools to universities
– Educational Centers – there are many language and vocational training centers in Bulgaria, but most of the time they are not in their own or specially designed buildings for training purposes
– Hospitals and medical centers – there is a boom in the last several years in the construction of private hospitals
– Long-term health care institutions – as far as they exist in Bulgaria, they are almost entirely private
– Nursing Homes – the number of private care homes for elderly people is growing in parallel with the deterioration of such public institutions
– Private Zoo and Museum of Natural History – why not? At least in large cities where there are enough potential visitors. The second largest city in the country – Plovdiv saw in 2008 its municipal zoo closed for not respecting European requirements for animal welfare, and so far has no open zoo
– Sports halls – many private clubs are now renting municipal and government facilities at “variable” conditions while the number of those regularly practicing sports is growing and in many places there are private playgrounds and sports halls
There are many other kinds of private projects under JESSICA currently being developed in Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, Spain and other countries, which we will present later.
What is common between these project examples?
Their interest for the general public, their lower yield and higher risk.
Just suitable for JESSICA 🙂
Date: Sept. 15, 2013