Rila Monastery Nature Park Management Plan - part - usaid

February 2004
Legal entities with direct managerial functions and roles in RMNP
These are institutions, organizations or other legal entities mandated by law with
duties and responsibilities pertinent to the direct management and conservation of the
territory of Rila Monastery Nature Park or components thereof, as well as having
property rights and commitments to that territory:
1. Rila Monastery. An autonomous monastery of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church
(BOC), directly subordinated to the Church’s Holy Synod, Rila Monastery is run
in both its spiritual and administrative affairs by an Abbot. Five monks
permanently serving at the Monastery perform religious services and all rites and
rituals. There is an administrative and support staff of 25. In addition to its
spiritual role and functions, the Monastery exercises legal rights over its territory
within the Nature Park and is fully entitled to engage in economic activities on its
lands. Also included in the Monastery compound is the Rila Monastery Museum,
with a staff of 3, offering guided tours and educational services to visitors.
The mailing addresses and telephones numbers for contact with the listed
institutions and organizations are presented in Appendix 7.
2. The Ministry of Agriculture and Forests (MAF), respectively the National
Forestry Board (NFB) (as well as physical persons and legal entities in the
municipalities in possession of lands, forests and water basins) are the agents
responsible for caretaking and protecting the Nature Parks (including RMNP) on
a national level. Regional structures of MAF are the Regional Forestry Board in
Kyustendil, the Rila Monastery State Forest Enterprise, and the Directorate of
Rila Monastery Nature Park.
Directorate of RMNP. It comprises a staff of five: Director, park zone
development expert, biodiversity expert, public relations expert and accountant.
Its role and functions are to coordinate activities pertinent to the implementation
of the Management Plan in the territory of RMNP, in compliance with the
provisions of PAA, FA, the Rules and Regulations on the Implementation of the
Forestry Act and the Rules and Regulations on the Structure, Functions and
Activities of the Nature Park Directorate. The Directorate has its offices in the
town of Rila, Kyustendil region.
The Rila Monastery State Forest Enterprise with a staff of 35. The main
functions of SFE are management of the state forests as well as the
implementation of the Forestry management plan on the territory of the enterprise.
They are also responsible for the security protection of all forests, regardless of
their form of ownership. By law, the obligations of SFE to RMNP amount to
solely guarding the park territory outside the area occupied by Rila Monastery
Forest Reserve. Security is provided by 2 forest guards without motor vehicles,
each responsible respectively for one of the two naturally defined park sections:
along the Rilska and Iliyna Rivers.
The Executive Fisheries and Aquatic Cultures Agency (EFACA) under MAF.
EFACA controls the implementation and execution of the Fisheries and Aquatic
Rila Monastery Nature Park
Management Plan -Draft
2004 - 2013
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