Zoltán Póser, former managing director of EDC Debrecen Nonprofit Kft. (EDC Debrecen Urban and Economic Development Center) said that he has worked with many Western European professionals, having lived in Switzerland before. In his experience, in Eastern Europe, negotiators are much more direct in expressing their ideas and needs, while in the West they are more and more indirect.
On the recovery fund, he said that the aim is to get out of the COVID-19 era quickly, and that this will be achieved through reforms to make the country “more resilient”. He stressed that it is not a single fund, but has both resource and reform components, which go hand in hand.
He cited the issue of energy development as an example: the reform part is to allow wind and solar power plants to be connected more freely to the grid in Hungary, and this requires simplification of legislation.
This will involve resources, with more than HUF 150 billion going to grid development. This will strengthen the grid and make it easier to connect renewable energy.
The programme also includes giving students and teachers laptops at home, as distance learning has shown that infrastructure is the biggest problem. 580,000 laptops will be distributed to students over the next period.
Reducing gas dependency is also an objective, so the energy system needs to be strengthened, Zoltán Póser pointed out.
There will also be a strong focus on improving crèche programmes to help women into work.
Nine major programmes are planned, one of which will focus on education, two nurseries in Debrecen, Postakertit and Nagysándortelep. Two buildings of the University of Debrecen will also be renovated, an IT system to support distance learning will be developed, and a dental simulator and robot-assisted surgery training will be developed. The company supplying the area will receive HUF 15 billion for network improvements.
The unification of the ticketing systems of MÁV and Volán is also part of the programme. At national level, hospital upgrades worth over HUF 200 billion and the development of hospital informatics are also planned.
Zoltán Póser said that although he no longer works in the city, he still lives here and is committed to the development of Debrecen, and regularly consults with Mayor of Debrcen László Papp.
