site.btaGreen Transition Goals Cannot Be Achieved Unless SMEs Are Engaged - OECD Expert

The OECD is looking forward to Bulgaria's accession to the organization, said Lucia Cusmano, Deputy Head of the OECD Entrepreneurship, SMEs and Tourism Division. "You started the accession procedure last spring and I hope we will soon be able to share information as full-fledged partners," Cusmano said during the OECD Sofia forum.

She said it is important to advance together in the green transition, but it is a great challenge and there is not much time. Various countries make ambitious statements and assume commitments, but the goals cannot be achieved unless small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are included, she added. "SMEs generate a lot of value added and provide jobs, but they are also responsible for a large share of the greenhouse gases. Forty per cent of the greenhouse gases in the EU come from the operation of SMEs. Therefore, we cannot achieve the goal of zero emissions unless SMEs are engaged in the green transition," Cusmano argued.