In the first quarter of 2022, the municipal authorities issued building permits for the construction of 1 850 residential buildings with 9 489 dwellings, 18 administrative buildings/offices and 1 071 other buildings. The construction of 1 269 residential buildings with 7 657 dwellings, 11 administrative buildings/offices and 572 other buildings was started.
As of 31 December 2021, the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria is administratively divided into 28 administrative districts and 265 municipalities, within which there are 3 160 individual mayoralties. Тhere were 5 257 settlements in the Republic of Bulgaria, of which 257 towns and 5 000 villages, while the settlement formations were 165 (including 8 of national and 157 of local importance).
Тhe smallest administrative district by area is Sofia (stolitsa), which at the same time is the biggest by population, with 1 307 439 inhabitants, making it the only district with a population above 1 000 000. The smallest administrative district by population is Vidin, with 78 814 inhabitants.
The number of detached crèches and groups in kindergartens functioning in the country as of 31.12.2021 was 833, with 32 856 places in them.
The number of children accommodated in crèches at the end of the year was 29 724. 15 347 of them were boys, and 14 377 - girls.
The total number of places in crèches per 100 children aged up to 3 years as of 31.12.2021 was 18.2, and the coverage of children brought up in crèches - 16.5 per 100 children aged up to 3 years.
In February 2022, compared to January 2022, a decrease is reported for the production of solid fuels - by 8.7%, liquefied petroleum gases - by 25.0%, unleaded motor gasoline - by 15.8%, transport diesel - by 12.0% and electricity - by 13.2%. No change in the production of natural gas.
In February 2022, compared to January 2022, a decrease is reported for the deliveries of solid fuels - by 8.4%, liquefied petroleum gases - by 9.4%, unleaded motor gasoline - by 17.1%, transport diesel - by 1.7%, natural gas - by 17.8% and electricity - by 15.0%.
In March 2022, in the conditions of the continuing epidemic situation, the number of trips of Bulgarian residents abroad was 538.3 thousand, or by 114.1% above the registered in March 2021.
In March 2022, the number of arrivals of visitors from abroad to Bulgaria was 627.8 thousand, or by 118.1% above in comparison with March 2021, as the transit was 46.1% (289.6 thousand) of all visits of foreigners in the country.
The Total Producer Price Index in March 2022 increased by 4.3% compared to the previous month and by 36.1% compared to the same month of 2021. The Producer Price Index on the Domestic Market in March 2022 rose by 4.3% compared to the previous month; compared to the same month of 2021, the domestic prices increased by 45.2%.
In April 2022, the total business climate indicator increases by 4.2 percentage points compared to the previous month. An improvement of the indicator is observed in industry, retail trade and service sector, and in construction a reduction is registered.
In 2021, the average monthly poverty line for the country is 504.33 BGN per person. The number of persons who are below this line is 1 532.4 thousand representing 22.1 % of the population. From 2021, a new indicator of severe material and social deprivation is included in the poverty indicators which shows the lack of necessary and desirable items for living a worthy life. It is calculated as the share of persons in the population who cannot afford 7 out of 13 items – 6 at the individual level and 7 at the household level. This indicator is part of the combined indicator "Population at risk of poverty and social exclusion" for regular monitoring of the progress of countries in meeting national sub-targets in the Europe 2030 strategy.
According to Demography statistics data population of the country as of the end of the 2021 the population is 6 838 937 persons. Compared to the previous year it has decreased by 77 611 persons or by 1.1%.
There are 58 678 live born children in 2021. The number of live births decreases by 408 compared to the previous year.
The number of deaths in 2021 is 148 995 and the crude mortality rate - 21.7‰. Compared to the previous year the number of deaths increases by 24 260.
In 2021, the government deficit and debt of the EU decreased in relative terms compared with 2020. In the EU, the government deficit to GDP ratio shrunk from 6.8% in 2020 to 4.7% in 2021. In the EU, the government debt to GDP ratio decreased from 90.0% at the end of 2020 to 88.1% at the end of 2021.