On March 10, at 17:00, a working meeting of Burgas NGOs was held in the Community Center of Hamalogika, Burgas. Via Pontica Foundation Project Coordinator attended the event, which was initiated by the Bulgarian Biodiversity Foundation. More than twenty NGO representatives from the Burgas Region participated in the consideration of issues, related to the promotion of the role of the non-governmental sector in Bulgarian society.
There were two main topics discussed: updating the Register of existing organizations on the territory of the municipality and discussion on the upcoming election of members of the Civil Society Development Council.
The Civil Society Development Council is an advisory body to the Council of Ministers, established on the basis of Art. 4 of the Non-Profit Legal Entities Act. The Council has the functions to develop and implement a policy to support the development of civil society in Bulgaria. Fourteen non-governmental organizations are expected to be included in its structure, which will work under the leadership of Deputy Prime Minister Tomislav Donchev. The focus is the process of creating, implementing and reporting on the Strategy for Supporting the Development of Civic Organizations. The members of the Council are yet to determine and vote.
All colleagues from the non-governmental sector agreed that it would be good practice for such meetings to be initiated on a regular basis so that they could work together on important and relevant topics related to policy-making and practice at national level in line with sustainable and responsible development of our country and society.