Bulgaria’s Ognyan Zlatev appointed as head of EC Representation in Croatia
The European Commission said on June 25 that it had appointed Ognyan Zlatev, currently head of the EC Representation in Bulgaria, as the new head of the Commission’s Representation in Zagreb, Croatia.
Zlatev will take up his duties on July 1 2019. He succeeds Branko Baričević, who is becoming an adviser to European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker for the preparation of the Croatian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2020.
The EC statement described Zlatev as a highly experienced expert in communication, with nearly 30 years of professional experience, he successfully supported the Commission’s work over the past six years at the Representation in Sofia and notably during the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of the EU in 2018.
“Mr Zlatev brings excellent knowledge of EU affairs, outstanding management skills and considerable expertise in media development, South-East Europe and the Western Balkans.”
He speaks Bulgarian, English, Russian, Croatian, Macedonian and Serbian.
Zlatev graduated from Sofia University St Kliment Ohridski and has an MA in Classical Philology. Subsequently, he obtained qualifications in political communication, media relations and development, election campaigning and NGO management.
He joined the European Commission in 2011 and was the head of the communication unit at the Directorate General of Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion. Prior to this, Zlatev served as a Member of the Managing Board of the Bulgarian National Television, and founded and managed the Media Development Centre in Bulgaria.
He was also a founding member and President of the South-East European Network for Professionalisation of the Media, to which 15 media centres and institutes from the region belong.
He was a Director of the Information Centre for the Open Society Institute in Sofia, Manager of the BBC Centre in Bulgaria and Exchange Officer at the British Council office in Bulgaria.
Zlatev has also worked as a consultant for international institutions (Unecsco, OSCE, World Bank) in South-East Europe and the Western Balkans, among others. He is a member of the European Association of Communications Directors and the President of the South-East European Public Sector Communication Association since 2014.
