Days after her 30-th anniversary on July 25, Louise Brown, the world's first test-tube baby, arrived in Bulgaria at the invitation of local foundation Iskam Bebe (I Want a Baby). Brown is visiting Bulgaria together with her mother, husband an son.

Brown's visit "is another occasion to give hope to the families with reproduction problems," Radina Velcheva, chair of the managing board of the foundation told Focus news agency. "It was the decision of the patients we work with too," she said.

Brown and her mother will take part in a symposium on successful models for coping with the demographic problem in Bulgaria.

According to the statistics for 2004, 270 000 families in Bulgaria had reproduction problems. However, there was no data for the number of in vitro babies, born in the country, Velcheva also said.

With some 20 million leva from Bulgaria's budget surplus at least 2000 babies could be born in Bulgaria using the in vitro method, Velcheva told journalists, as quoted by Dnevnik daily. The money could fund 4000 to 5000 in vitro fertilisation attempts, which was the full capacity of the clinics in the country. The price of one attempt was nearly 5000 leva and the chances for success were above 40 per cent among women under 40.

Velcheva said that the National Health Insurance Fund had provided 1000 patients annually with nearly 1500 leva each for a third consecutive year. The remaining costs of the in vitro operation was to be paid by the patients.

"We have a female lobby in Parliament, which supports us. I hope that the promises politicians give, that three in vitro procedures would be fully for paid by the state, will be realised in 2009," Velcheva said as quoted by Focus.