OUR DISTRICT

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VRATSA DISTRICT
OUR DISTRICT
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GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION AND NATURAL CHARACTERISTICS

• BASIC DATA OF VRATSA DISTRICT
• Total area 3 600 sq.??
• Population 219
  830 residents
• Agricultural area 302 300
  h?
• Forests
  575 sq.??
• Water area 67 sq.??
• Territories for transport and infrastructure - 21
  sq.??

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• Vratsa District is situated in the Northwestern
  part of Bulgaria and covers approximately 3 of
  the total area of the country.

VRATSA DISTRICT

• The climate is temperate-continental with cold
  winter and hot summer.
• Relief Mainly flat landscape. Most of the
  territory is occupied by the Danube Valley. To
  the South and South West it gradually turns into
  Fore Balkan and in Stara Planina (Balkan
  Mountain).

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History

• In the Regional Museum of History, where is
  situtated the Art Gallery, is exhibited the world
  famous, gold plated, silver, Thracian treasure of
  the village Rogozen.

• Vratsa District is a center of a rich ancient
  culture in Northwestern Bulgaria. In the town
  Vratsa there are remarkable monuments of the
  cultural, historical and architectural heritage ,
  which are of national importance, some of them
  are the Tower of Mechtchiite and Kurtpachova
  Tower, built in ??? th century.

VRATSA DISTRICT

• As a part of the Regional Museum of History the
  Ethnographic Museum has kept the memory of the
  traditional Bulgarian culture and customs.

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History

• In the town Oriahovo are the Museum of History,
  Ethnographic House and the House-museum of Diko
  Iliev - the genius Bulgarian folk composer and
  musician.
• The National Museum Ship Radetzki in the town
  Kozloduy retained the memory of the heroism of
  the detachment of Hristo Botev.
• There are also Museum exhibitions and Art
  Galleries in the towns Mezdra and Krivodol.

• The Cherepish monastery Assumption (?IV?.)
  one of the oldest monasteries, preserved until
  the recent days, tucked away at the foot of the
  grand rocks in the Iskar defile and was connected
  with the battles of Tzar Ivan Shishman.

VRATSA DISTRICT

• On the historical path of the Hristo Botevs
  detachment from the Kozloduy rivers bank to the
  summit Okoltchitsa, each year many people from
  all the country participate in the National
  marche , to show their respect to the memory of
  Hristo Botev and the immortality of all Bulgarian
  heroes.
• Each year on the 1st and 2nd of June in the town
  Vratsa and on the summit Okoltchitsa are
  organized celebrations in the memory of Hristo
  Botev and all heroes perished in the name of the
  Liberation of Bulgaria.

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EDUCATIONAL CENTERS

• There are Local Centers of the following
  Universities
• Veliko Turnovo University St.Cyril and
  St.Methodius- Pedagogical college Vratsa
• University of Medicine Sofia -Medical college
  Vratsa
• Southwestern University Neofit Rilski -
  Blagoevgrad - Local Center Vratsa
• University of National and World Economy -Vratsa
  Local Center of Economy
• International Slavonic Institute - Local Center
  Vratsa
• New Bulgarian University - Local Center Vratsa
• Moscow University -Local Center Vratsa

VRATSA DISTRICT

• In Vratsa District There are 15 secondary
  schools, 19 high and vocational schools,
  providing education for the students - the future
  sepcialists in economics, mechanical and electric
  engineering, nuclear power,chemistry and textile
  industry, stone-cutting, agriculture and
  others.There are also High School of foreign
  languages and High school of Natural Sciences and
  Mathematics.

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CULTURE
The Regional institutions of Culture realize
their successful activities in Vratsa District -
Regional Museum of History and Art Gallery, Drama
puppet theatre and Vratsa philharmonic orchestra,
placed in the Palace of Culture in the town
Vratsa.

• The House of the power specialists in the town
  Kozloduy and the House of the railwayman in the
  town Mezdra are very important Centers of culture
  for the region.
• The 92 small local cnters of culture in the
  District preserve the traditions and the
  uniqueness of the Bulgarian spirit.

VRATSA DISTRICT
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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

• The Gross Domestic Product of Vratsa District - 4
  338 levas per capita of the population /2001/
  represents 54 of the total GDP for the three
  Districts in the Northwestern region for planning
  and is also16 higher than the average GDP for
  Bulgaria. The Gross production of industry shows
  an increase of 21 comparing with 2000 .

The economic fields of the industrial manufacture
in the District are production of electric power,
mechanical engineering, food processing and
beverage, textile and clothing industry, trade
and construction.
VRATSA DISTRICT

• The Southern part of the District is more
  industrialized, comparing to the Northern, where
  the development of the agriculture is
  predominant.
• The largest companies, presenting the economic
  development of the District are
  Holcim-Bulgaria AD - villageBeli izvor,
  Centromet AD - town Vratsa, Sunnytex AD -
  town Mezdra, Enemona AD -town Kozloduy,
  Ledenika AD - town Mezdra, Hemus-M AD -town
  Mezdra, Lalov I Vachev EOOD - town Vratsa,
  Bulned EOOD - town Vratsa

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FOREIGN INVESTMENTS

• The attraction of foreign investment funds with
  the aim of technological renovation for export
  oriented goods is the main priority to restore
  the share of industry in the economic structure
  of Vratsa District.

VRATSA DISTRICT

• The availability of foreign investment funds is
  for now unsufficient and we only can count on
  the SMEs development as shareholding companies
  with foreign investments . The investors are
  presented mainly by Swiss, Italian and Greek
  companies.

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TRANSPORT AND TECHNICAL INFRASTRUCTURE

• The length of the roads within the territory of
  Vratsa District is 1 277 km of the Republican
  Road system.
• The bus transport system ensures the suitable
  connections to the towns Sofia, Pleven,
  Svishtov, Lovech, Gabrovo, Vidin and others.

VRATSA DISTRICT

• A gas-main passes through the territory of Vratsa
  District and there is a natural gas-condensed
  field in the village of Chiren.

• The port of Oriahovo and the ferry-boat
  connection Oriahovo-Beket are of national and
  international importance.
• In the town Mezdra is situated the main railways
  junction, which connects the Northwestern
  Bulgaria with the rest of the country.

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NATURE, RECREATION AND TOURISM
Vratchansky Balkan Natural Park, as a protected
natural area, covers the Reserve Vratchansky
karst - picturesque rocky formations, the cave
Ledenika" tourist site of national importance
and the gorge Vratsata near the river Leva.

• Near the villages Chiren and Liliatche are
  situated the natural rock bridge Bojia most
  (Gods Bridge), karst spring Jabokrek" and
  the cave Ponora.

VRATSA DISTRICT

• Some of the most interesting sites within the
  territory of Vratchansky Balkan Natural Park
  are the Vratsa Eco-trail, Children Ecological
  educational Center and the cave Zmeiova dupka.

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NATURE, RECREATION AND TOURISM

• There are perfect conditions in the area of
  Vratsa Balkan (Vratsa Mountain) for the
  development of the alpinism, gliding and
  mountaineering. 3 zones for recreation and
  tourism are defined with the chalets
  Okoltchitsa, Parshevitsa and Ledenika.

VRATSA DISTRICT

• The touristic sites of national importance are
  the summit Vola the place, where our national
  hero Hristo Botev - poet and revolutionary,
  perished, Borovanska mogila the ruins of an
  ancient Roman fortress and the Memorial complex
  Botev put( Botevs route).

• There are very good prerequisites in the
  Northern part of Vratsa District to develop the
  tourism and fishing and exiting boating along the
  river Danube.

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AGRICULTURE

• Vratsa District has traditions in the development
  of the agriculture, main factor for that being
  the favorable natural and climatic conditions.
• The total area of the agricultural territories is
  302 300 ha, and the cultivated lands are 267
  000 ha.

VRATSA DISTRICT

• Most of the fields are sowed with the traditional
  crops - wheat, maize, sunflower, barley. The
  orchards and vineyards cover a little share of
  the cultivated land. There is a potential to
  increase the areas under irrigation,to develop
  silk-worm breeding, bee-keeping and organic
  plant-growing.

• The sustainable development of the agriculture is
  one of the priorities of the District Development
  plan as well as to overcome the
  social-demographic problems and the economic
  stabilization of the rural areas.

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VRATSA DISTRICT
OUR FUTURE