On 27 October 2022, Mr. Francisco Campos, Senior Economist for the World Bank Group, visited the CPSBB and met with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vessela Kazashka and Mrs. Marina Mircheva. Mr. Francisco Campos is an advisor of the Bulgarian Ministry of Innovations and Growth and is looking for potential opportunities to stimulate cooperation between small and medium-sized (SME) Bulgarian enterprises and scientific organizations in the country.

Considering CPSBB is a unique center of excellence in plant science, Mr. Campos expressed interest in the Center’s structure, expertise, and research activities, which could potentially be helpful to companies demanding scientific services and analyses.

Mrs. Mircheva presented the PlantaSYST project and CPSBB’s strategic objectives and structure. A discussion was held emphasizing the collaboration between SMEs and research organizations. Assoc. Prof. Kazashka pointed out the main challenges to the relationship between science and business. Mr. Campos recommended a stronger focus on the visibility of the Center so that SMEs could easily recognize it as a service provider.

Further meetings will be held between the World Bank Group and CPSBB to establish a framework for future cooperation between the Center and SMEs in Bulgaria.