Bulgaria to provide BGN 3.5 million in aid to Western Balkans and Eastern Partnership countries
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Bulgaria will provide financial assistance to 9 countries in the Western Balkans and the Eastern Partnership by providing BGN 3,485,028 in grants for the implementation of projects aimed at the development of education, science, culture, social integration and the civil society.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will conclude the relevant agreements in respect of 42 projects in Serbia, Northern Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Albania, Moldova, Ukraine, Armenia and Georgia.
BGN 35,000 has been allocated to Bosilegrad in Serbia, that will help 90 children experience an ‘Olympic vacation’. The idea behind this project, pursued by the Cultural and Information Center in Bosilegrad, is for the children, accompanied by 8 instructors, to undergo a summer training featuring sports, culture, arts and conservation of customs and traditions. This is expected to contribute to the socialization of young people in Bosilegrad while keeping them away from criminal activity, drug use or other forms of youth antisocial behavior. Another project to be supported with BGN 45,000 seeks to promote cohesion between the Serbian and the European education systems. The goal is for schools in small towns in Southern and Eastern Serbia to become better informed of the practical steps of applying for participation in international projects and establish contacts with their partners in cross-border areas. BGN 180,000 will be allocated to promoting tourism in Dimitrovgrad Municipality through a project for upgrading the infrastructure of the Neshkov Vrah complex. BGN 20,000 will go into the overhaul of the great auditorium of the Cultural Center in the village of Ivanovo in Vojvodina, whose population is in part Bulgarian. This is the first project funded by Bulgaria in the autonomous region of Vojvodina. It is also aimed at making an image for Bulgaria as a country with a substantial contribution to Europe’s cultural diversity.
Our country will also provide BGN 35,000 for the continued implementation of a project for establishing a Center for the Study of Migration is Serbia, as a result of which for the first time in 2018 a national Serbian daily paper printed articles and news reports in Bulgarian.
A total of 10 projects will be funded in the Republic of North Macedonia. Among them are a project for underwater and archaeological exploration and research of Lake Ohrid, with a value of BGN 48,895; and a project for the restoration of two bridges: in the town of Struga and the village of Lozani, with a combined value of BGN 200,000. Almost BGN 50,000 has been allocated to a project for improving dialog between media outlets in the Republic of North Macedonia and Bulgaria. The aim is to promote dialog between journalists from the two countries as would contribute to better-quality coverage of events in each other’s country, to building partnerships between media outlets and eliminating prejudice.
Among to other projects aimed at promoting civil society and education is the Balkan Puzzle project, which will receive BGN 36,000. The project seeks to promote closeness between pupils in a pair of twinned schools: the Dimitar Miladinov Primary School on Skopje and the Hristo Botev Primary School in Sandanski, with the aim of preserving their common cultural and historical heritage.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria will finance activities aimed at improving the conditions in kindergartens and schools. BGN 27,860 will go into furnishing children’s rooms and other premises of the Šugić kindergarten in the town of Kotor Varoš. Over BGN 70,000 will also be disbursed for the municipalities of Tuzla and Srebrenica, aimed at improving conditions in schools and kindergartens.
Another BGN 70,000 will be allocated to projects in Kosovo, seeking to improve conditions in education by acquiring furniture, toys and learning aids for kindergartens and schools.
For the Republic of Albania, funding will be provided for the construction of 6 kilometers of asphalt road between the town of Bilitz and the village of Varnika worth BGN 1,125,561. The project is intended to provide easier access for the inhabitants of both places to educational institutions, administrative and medical services.
In the Republic of Moldova, three projects have been approved for funding, all three of them to be implemented in the town of Taraklija. BGN 190,349 will be allocated for refurbishment of the infectious diseases ward of the district hospital, and BGN 74,882, for improving the physical environment of the building that houses the Rodolyubie [Patriotism] Song and Dance Ensemble and for buying sound equipment. Almost BGN 300,000 has been earmarked for projects in Ukraine, in support of educational establishments and libraries.
Over BGN 130,000 has been allocated for three projects in Armenia, aimed at promoting the role of women in business and their empowerment, and the protection of women’s rights. More than BGN 90,000 will be provided to two projects in Georgia, aimed at drawing attention to the protection of children’s rights and the development of a civil society.
The funds for those projects are allocated from the 2019 budget of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs earmarked for official development aid and humanitarian assistance. The selection of projects, which is carried out jointly with the beneficiary countries, conforms to the objectives of Bulgaria’s foreign policy. Among those objectives is preserving the European perspective of the countries in the Western Balkans, and promoting the social and economic development of the partner nations.