(relatively) skilled labor force. In Bulgaria’s official Sector
Investment Strategy we can find proposals for specific
areas of development that already have some basis for
growth. One example is biotechnology. But there is also a
map in the strategy, which shows that the number of
countries ready to develop (or currently developing)
biotechnology as an important sector is not that small.
Why? Because serious investments are expected in this
area and Bulgaria can be one of the countries to take
advantage of these favorable times.
A serious question arises here. If we decide to compete
with the others in the field of biotechnology, can we
actually offer something more than them? Do we really
have the key advantages to facilitate the development of
this sector for a long period of time and bring more added
value in comparison to other countries?
Can we compete with Ireland, which by 2020 plans to
host dozens of multinational companies and global
innovation leaders, thus creating the most dynamic startup
environment in Europe? Can we compete with Finland,
which by 2030 plans to become the “problem solver of
the world”, the country with the most functional society,
with drinking water from every lake and river and
exemplary education models to be implemented
throughout the globe? Can we compete with Australia,
which plans to be the best positioned country in the Asian
21st century and by 2025 to be in the top 5 worldwide
for ease of doing business, in the top 10 for innovation
systems, in the top 10 for elementary schooling and have
10 universities in the global top 100 rankings?
No, we cannot compete with them. And we don`t have
to. Because we cannot be destination number one in a
competition created by someone else.
There will always be someone to outrun us, not least
because of our starting position. In almost all areas we
start from a low base, even compared to countries with
similar quality of life, population and culture. We are not
last, but we are far enough behind. And our goal is to be
number one, right?
We want to have export-oriented companies that
produce goods and services with high added value. At the
same time, from ”Europe’s backyard” we are steadily
becoming “Europe`s back office”, simply because this is the
only thing that we can offer at the moment. In this
particular instance Bulgaria seems interesting and
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Coca-Cola decides to outsource its entire European back
office here. However, if someone else decides to offer
better conditions, we can be replaced in an instant.
The British Ambassador in Sofia, Jonathan Allen, recently
said that we are heading in the right direction, that moving
ahead is simply a matter of speed. But this is not about
speed at all – we are not in a hurry right now and we
have never been. The problem is that we don`t know
where we are heading.
If we want to be number one, being the best is not
enough. We have to be different.
We have to create our own race.
The race
has changed
The world has gone mad
We missed an important period in the development while
being part of a different system. Over the last two decades
we were trying to catch up – or so it seems. The problem
is that we are looking at an old picture of the world. We
are trying to get closer to something that is already fading
away. Our situation is similar to looking at old postcards
from the Black Sea shore – they certainly are from the
Sunny Beach resort but the beach itself is quite different
(where it still exists).
Predictability, stability, factories with happy workers and
effective management techniques are all things of the past.
Our dreams are out of fashion.
None of the solutions for the future of Bulgaria that are
being discussed at the moment take into account the fact
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that the world has gone crazy and will become crazier
over time. All of our actions, no matter how focused, will
become pointless in the face of a much bigger change
taking place at the moment.
According to Seth Godin, the industrial economy, based
on the competition for increasingly scarce resources, is
giving way to a different economy, driven by the
completely opposite force – abundance. Not in the sense
of access to natural or material resources, but as the
plentitude of opportunities for making choices, creating
connections and gaining access to knowledge, ideas and
people. The connection economy offers two possible
directions – downward, towards the lowest prices and the
cheapest labor (the most recent example being the
tragedy in the garment factory in Bangladesh) or upward,
towards being unique and irreplaceable for others.
The more the connection economy develops, the more
valuable it becomes. Connections lead to more
connections, knowledge generates more knowledge, ideas
lead to more ideas. In the connection economy there are
no winners and losers - there is a place for everyone. The
more you give to others, the more it pays off. From this
perspective, the future doesn`t seem so grim, does it?
Of course this leads to risk, instability and uncertainty. But
in a world like ours, these concepts are the new reality –
and they will continue to extend their reach.
There is an expression, which describes the present
situation very well:
The old rules are no longer working
and the new ones are not working yet.
Many of the things that are currently not functioning in
Bulgaria are not functioning in many other places around
the globe – education, social systems, healthcare, business
models and institutions. The reasons are different but the
situation is quite similar.
This is pretty good news for us – perpetual transition is
the typical state of Bulgaria. It is our existence by default.
Our culture is the culture of crossroads, constant
movement and change, not of stability and predictability.
Now all Bulgarian citizens are citizens of the world,
because the world itself is in transition. Our problems are
global problems. Our solutions could become global
solutions.
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