Kristalina Georgieva, Bulgaria’s European Commissioner-designate, appears to be on the high road to approval, a high profile – and high pressure.

Her political sponsors expect that she will sail through her confirmation hearing in front of the European Parliament’s development committee on February 3, and there has been no indication that those who decried her predecessor as Bulgaria’s candidate will bar her way.

Georgieva, who will have the International Co-operation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response portfolio, expressed confidence in an interview with Bulgarian National Radio on January 25 about her confirmation hearing.

She said that the World Bank, where she has been a vice president, was not a humanitarian organisation but her post there had meant that she had built relationships with the United Nations, the European Commission, the Red Cross and other institutions working in the field.

Earlier, in an interview with a Bulgarian-language newspaper, Georgieva said that she "counted herself lucky" in being allocated the portfolio because it was among those for which she was best prepared professionally.

Her initial meeting with European Commission President Jose Barroso ended with a stamp of approval, with Barroso praising Georgieva’s "solid international experience and knowledge" that would enable her to contribute substantially as a European Commissioner.

Against the background of the controversy that attended her predecessor as the nominee, Georgieva has underlined that she has no shares in any Bulgarian or foreign company. Further, after some whispering against her in Bulgaria, a fast-track investigation by the country’s commission that checks people for connections with the communist-era secret services gave Georgieva a clean bill of health.

With the other 25 Commissioners-designate, Georgieva’s confirmation in the job will be put to the vote on February 9 when the European Parliament will be asked to approve the "Barroso II" Commission as a whole. Plans are for the swearing-in of the new Commission to take place the following day, a day before the special meeting of EU heads of state and government called by the Spanish presidency of the bloc to discuss pressing issues such as the EU’s economic recovery – and Haiti.