“The Danube cannot be the priority of a single country. Its water level at Ruse is the result of what happens in other regions of Europe – Bavaria, the Alps and the Carpathians,” said Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Anna Natova at the opening of the international conference “Challenges and Prospects for the Development of Navigation on the Danube River” in the city of Ruse.
The forum opened with the official launch (first-day cancellation) of a postage stamp marking the 70th anniversary of the Executive Agency for Exploration and Maintenance of the Danube River.
Among the main challenges facing navigation are ensuring year-round navigability, prolonged low water levels and extreme climate events, which are no longer the exception. Logistics companies will choose the river only if they can rely on it. Deputy Minister Natova pointed out that investment should be directed to the sections that restrict traffic along the entire transport corridor, based on a joint assessment rather than on national plans alone.
She noted that inland waterway transport is among the most energy-efficient and low-carbon modes of transport and plays an important role in sustainable mobility.
As an example of joint action, she cited the DISMAR project, which Bulgaria and Romania are implementing together. It includes an integrated fairway marking system, new buoys and shore signs, as well as a digital platform providing real-time navigation information.
In 2026, Bulgaria holds the Presidency of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region under the motto “Connecting Regions, Building Cohesion – A Stronger Danube for All”, Deputy Minister Natova recalled.
The conference is attended by the European Coordinator for the Rhine–Danube Transport Corridor, Margarida Marques, the Director-General of the Danube Commission, Manfred Seitz, the Coordinator of Priority Area 1a “Inland Waterways” of the Danube Strategy, Markus Simoner, the Regional Governor of Ruse, Prof. Dr. Lyubomir Vladimirov, and the Mayor of Ruse Municipality, Pencho Milkov.
