ANNUAL REPORT ON THE ACTIVITY OF OPEN SOCIETY INSTITUTE – SOFIA FOUNDATION for 2018

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CONTENTS

Mission 3

1 Report of the Executive Director 5

2 Financial Profile 6

3 Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria under the EEA FM 2019-2021

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4 European Policies Programme 12

5 Governance and Public Policies Programme 15

6 Legal Programme 20

7 Public Debate Programme 22

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Roma Programme

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MISSION

To develop and support the values and practices of the open society in Bulgaria -

To support the democratization of public life -

To work for the extension and guaranteeing of civil freedoms -

To support the strengthening of civil sector institutions -

To support the European integration and regional cooperation of Bulgaria

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Founder George Soros

Board of Trustees Prof. Pepka Boyadzhieva - Chair

Aleksandar Kashamov Yordan Mateev

Veska Karastoyanova Ivan Bedrov (until October 2018)

Associate Prof. Milena Stefanova (until October 2018)

Executive Director Georgi Stoytchev

Financial Director Veliko Sherbanov

Senior Lawyer

Desislva Velkova

Programme Directors Dr. Elitsa Markova Dr. Boyan Zahariev Valentina Kazanska Dr. Ivanka Ivanova Dimitar Dimitrov Marin Lesinsky

Anita Jones

Person in Charge of Information and Communication Milen Minchev

Senior Economist

Georgi Angelov

Sociological Analyses Unit Dr. Dragomira Belcheva

Dr. Petya Braynova Ilko Yordanov

Ralitsa Dimitrova

Project Design Unit Dr. Elitsa Markova Teodora Ivanova

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1. REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

In 2018 Open Society Institute – Sofia continued working on four main priorities: good governance, rule of law and human rights, European policies and civic participation. The activity of the Institute was carried out through the following programmes: European Policies, Governance and Public Policies, Public Debate, Legal Programme, Roma Programme and Active Citizens Fund Programme.

In 2018 Open Society Institute – Sofia Foundation (in partnership with Workshop for Civic Initiatives Foundation and Trust for Social Achievement Foundation) was involved in the preparation and launching of the Active Citizens Fund Programme under the EEA FM. The fund amounts to EUR 15 500 000, provided by the donor countries – Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, and its main objective is civil society and active citizenship strengthened and vulnerable groups empowered. The Programme seeks to develop the long-term sustainability and capacity of the civil society sector, strengthening its role in promoting democratic participation, active citizenship and human rights. It shall operate until 2024. In the spring of 2018, after completing the necessary preparatory activities, Open Society Institute – Sofia Foundation signed an agreement with the Office of the EEA Financial Mechanism for performing the functions of Operator of the programme fund, Active Citizens Fund, in Bulgaria. During the year Open Society Institute – Sofia was engaged in the organization of the opening event of the programme, in developing application guidelines and the launching of the First Call for Strategic Projects under the Programme, as well as in conducting a bilateral seminar and providing support for the development of joint project ideas between Bulgarian civic organizations and donor county organizations. During the year, using its own funds and funding from other sources, Open Society Institute – Sofia carried out a series of research and operational initiatives and was encouraging the informed public debate in the fields of democracy and human rights, the rule of law, civic participation, fighting hate speech, EU convergence processes, as well as Roma inclusion. Supported by the European Commission, the foundation continued working on improving the quality of legal aid in the country and on improving the access of educated young people of Roma origin to quality jobs in the private sector. Open Society Institute – Sofia continued providing advisory services as part of its efforts to guarantee its long-term sustainable development. In this respect, along with the management of the Active Citizens Fund, during the year the Institute was also involved in carrying out orders of external clients mainly in the field of education, including such related to maintaining and updating the Bulgarian University Ranking System. Georgi Stoychev, Executive Director 2. FINANCIAL PROFILE І. Revenues The total amount of the revenues in 2018 comes up to EUR 557 thousand as compared to EUR 483 thousand in 2017.

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Revenues from grants The revenues from grants in 2018 amount to EUR 266 thousand compared with 310 thousand in 2017. In 2017 the Foundation was elected Operator of the Bulgarian fund of the programme Active Citizens Fund under the EEA FM 2014-2021 for the period until 2024. The programme implementation agreement was signed in the spring of 2018. In 2018 the Foundation carried out programme activities related to bilateral cooperation initiatives and regional initiatives within the Fund amounting to EUR 14 thousand. In 2018 the Foundation was coordinator of two international projects supported by the European Commission. The approved revenues in terms of their implementation in 2018 amount to EUR 144 against EUR 123 thousand in 2017.

The revenues approved in 2018 from the Open Society foundation network amount to EUR 72 thousand compared to EUR 118 thousand in 2017. In 2018 programme activities funded by other donors to the amount of EUR 36 thousand were carried out, whereas the amount for 2017 was EUR 47 thousand. Projects funded by other donors in 2018:

Donor Project name Funding in

thousand EUR

Roma Education Fund Organization of student scholarship scheme

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Other donors 12

Total 36

Business Activity In 2018 the Foundation realized revenues from business activity to the amount of EUR 285 thousand from the following activities:

Management of Active Citizens Fund under the EEA FM EUR 219 thousand Activities assigned by the Ministry of Education EUR 47 thousand Others EUR 19 thousand

By comparison, in 2017 the business activity revenues came up to EUR 153 thousand. Result from the activity In 2018 the costs exceeded the revenues with EUR 362 thousand and the negative difference was covered by the financial reserves of the Foundation. By comparison, in 2017 the negative result from the activity of the Foundation covered by its financial reserves amounted to EUR 342 thousand.

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Net Assets As at the end of 2018 the amount of the net assets totaled EUR 7 563 thousand against EUR 7 925 thousand in 2017. The decrease in terms of 2017 reflects the negative result from the activity of the Foundation in 2018. The net assets of the Foundation as at December 31, 2018 include buildings and land to the amount of EUR 339 thousand and investments in subsidiaries of EUR 491 thousand. The Foundation has an office at 56, Solunska Street with 35 computerized work-places and 2 rooms for business meetings. II. Costs In 2018 the total costs amounted to EUR 919 thousand against EUR 825 thousand in 2017. Programme Costs In 2018 the programme costs came up to a total of EUR 397 thousand against EUR 467 thousand in 2017. Amount of the programme costs in the period 2014-2018 by programme areas, in thousand EUR:

Programme area 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014

in thousand EUR

Active Citizens Fund / NGO Programme

14 42 -426 2 883 6 200

Emergency Fund 10 -19 26 10

Governance and Public Policies 69 72 91 171 268

European Policies 25 26 30 53 62

Legal Programme 46 73 43 38 39

Public Debate 53 23 23 44 31

Roma 234 221 204 102 155

Education and Youth Programmes

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Others -44

Total 397 467 -54 3 320 6 767

In 2018 the Foundation used its own reserve to cover programme costs totaling EUR 132 thousand against EUR 157 thousand in 2017. Supported projects In 2018 a total of 18 projects were funded of which 3 projects of partner organizations and 15 projects implemented by Open Society Institute – Sofia. Support was provided for the

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participation of mentors and scholarship beneficiaries in 4 conferences in the field of healthcare.

Programme area

Number of projects funded Including

Total Organizations

Open Society Institute - Sofia

Active Citizens Fund 1 1

Governance and Public Policies 3 3

European Policies and Civic Participation

2 2

Legal Programme 4 1 3

Public Debate 3 3

Roma 5 2 3

Total 18 3 15

Supported participation in conferences of scholarship holders of Roma origin and mentors

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By comparison, in 2017 a total of 19 projects were funded of which 5 projects of partner organizations and 14 operational projects implemented by Open Society Institute – Sofia. Support was provided for the participation of mentors and scholarship beneficiaries in 7 conferences in the field of healthcare. The administrative costs in 2018 amount to EUR 238 thousand. The amount of the costs for business activity for 2018 comes up to EUR 283 thousand, the realized profit amounts to EUR 2 thousand. In 2018 the Foundation employed 38 people, including part time. In terms of full time the average number of employees of the Foundation was 24 people. III. Reporting and Control The financial reporting is kept in accordance with the Bulgarian accounting legislation, the International Financial Reporting Standards, as well as the approved standards and the requirements of the donor organizations. Open Society Institute – Sofia Foundation is registered for public benefit and each year it publishes the reports on its activity.

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Since 2012 the quality management system of Open Society Institute - Sofia has been certified according to the ISO 9001:2008 standards and since 2017 it has been certified as per ISO 9001:2015.

Veliko Sherbanov, Financial Director

3. ACTIVE CITIZENS FUND BULGARIA UNDER THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA FINANCIAL MECHANISM 2014-2021

Since 2018 Open Society Institute – Sofia Foundation, in partnership with Workshop for Civic Initiatives Foundation and Trust for Social Achievement Foundation, has been Operator of Active Citizens Fund in Bulgaria under the EEA FM 2014-2021. The fund amounts to EUR 15 500 000, provided entirely by the donor countries – Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. Its main objective is civil society and active citizenship strengthened and vulnerable groups empowered. The fund is developing the long-term sustainability and capacity of the civil society sector, strengthening its role in promoting democratic participation, active citizenship and human rights.

The programme Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria was launched officially on July 7, 2018 in the presence of nearly 300 representatives of civic organizations and other interested parties.

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The official launching of the programme Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria. On the photo: Tomislav Donchev, Deputy Prime Minister of Bulgaria and Sjur Larsen, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway, Sofia , June 7, 2018, Luimiere Lidl Cinema

In 2018 the programme management and control systems were developed, as well as the documents related to the calls for project proposals; the official website of the Fund was also launched – www.activecitizensfund.bg.

The first call for strategic projects and guidelines for submitting project proposals under small initiatives scheme were announced on October 23, 2017. Information days and seminars on preparing project proposals were organized in various cities of the country. The Operator carried out a series of orientation seminars and webinars on different priority themes of the Fund. Approximately 400 people from all over the country took part in the information days and events for building the capacity of the organizations applying to the Fund.

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Official launching of the programme Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria, Sofia, June 7, 2018, Luimiere Lidl Cinema

With regard to the announced First Call for Strategic Projects, the first bilateral seminar was held with the purpose of establishing contacts and building partnerships between civic organizations from Bulgaria and the donor countries – about 60 representatives of non-governmental organizations from Bulgaria and Norway took part in the seminar and participated in lively discussions.

First bilateral seminar between representatives of civic organizations from Bulgaria and the donor countries, Sofia,

November 7, 2018

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In November-December 2018 the Operator of Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria approved twenty-four applications for developing bilateral project proposals, submitted by organizations from Bulgaria, Island and Norway.

4. EUROPEAN POLICIES PROGRAMME

As a new EU Member State, Bulgaria shares a number of common challenges with the other countries of the fifth enlargement in Central and Eastern Europe. They result from their common historic destiny during the second half of the 20th century, the slower economic development as compared to the older Member States, and the lower level of integration with the European structures. There are concerns that, as a result of the economic and political crises, these differences, as well as the inherited prejudices, might aggravate and lead to a less open and more fragmented EU. 2018 saw the beginning of the eleventh year since Bulgaria joined the EU. However, the country continued facing a number of specific challenges. Bulgaria has two unfinished projects for European integration – the Schengen and Euro Area memberships. The Brexit decision posed the problem of Multi-speed Europe and the risk of Bulgaria lagging behind. In 2018 Bulgaria took over the presidency of the Council of the European Union for the first half of 2018 with the main priorities being facilitating the accession process of the Western Balkan countries which are our direct neighbors. Against this background, the role of the European Policies Programme is to support the full integration of Bulgaria to the EU, as well as to hold an informed public debate on the application and formulation of the common European policies and the EU convergence processes. The Programme combines research and analytical approaches with monitoring activities. Through the European Policies Initiative, the Programme is establishing and developing contacts with research institutes and experts with similar goals in EU and particularly in the new CEE member states, as well as in the countries of the neighborhood policy and the Western Balkans. Main Programme initiatives in 2018: The European Catch-Up Index of the European Policies Programme was continued in 2018 as one of the main projects of the Programme. The project registers to what extent the member states from Central and Eastern Europe “caught up” with the older member states in terms of the following categories: economy, quality of life, democracy and good governance. The Index is published on a special internet-based interactive platform of the Catch-Up Index - www.TheCatchUpIndex.eu, which provides each user with the opportunity to draw up his or her own index based on the data entered and the functionalities of the platform with graphical representation.

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The Catch-Up Index

On May 16, 2018 the report Try Harder: Findings of the European Catch-Up Index 2017 was published including the results of the Catch-Up Index 2017 (published on the websites www.osis.bg and www.thecatchupindex.eu). The Index was presented at Bulgarian and international events, with publications and interviews in national and international media. In 2018 more data were collected and analyzed in terms of 47 basic indicators about 35 countries for the following edition of the Catch-up Index 2018. The series of analytical materials (policy briefs), already established as a successful format, continued in 2018. Special analytical materials were publishes as a series in a digital form on the websites www.osis.bg and www.osi.bg in Bulgarian and in English, and were disseminated via the media, social networks and e-mail. An issue was dedicated to public opinion in Bulgaria and the EU enlargement towards the Western Balkans, which was one of the main themes of our country’s presidency of the European Union. Another issue was dedicated to public opinion and key themes of Bulgaria’s membership of the EU in the last 10 years. Another initiative of the Programme in 2018 was the second issue of the Media Literacy Index 2018 and the release of a report in Bulgarian and English entitled Common Sense Wanted: Resilience to ‘Post-Truth’ and its Predictors in the New Media Literacy Index 2018. The Index is about measuring resilience to ‘post-truth’, ‘fake-news’ and their consequences in a number of European countries and offering an useful instrument to finding measures and solutions. The publication of the report on the 2018 index had massive coverage in Bulgaria and abroad and was presented at a number of forums dedicated to the theme.

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In 2018 the director of the Policies Programme continued participating in governmental and non-governmental initiatives in Bulgaria and abroad as part of the civil contribution to the Bulgarian presidency of the EU in the first half of 2018.

5. GOVERNANCE AND PUBLIC POLICIES PROGRAMME

Socio-economic analyses, reports, trainings and participation in public events

In 2018 the team of the Governance and Public Policies Programme continued the traditional monitoring of the economy and its participation in the debates on the economic and budget policy. The study When is Eastern Europe Going to Catch up with Western Europe in Terms of Income1 provoked wide interest and was cited by the media, including by international media such as Bloomberg. Other topical issues were the country’s candidacy for the Eurozone, the new EU budget, the effects of the European membership, the Bulgarian migration trends. Analyses of the economic policy and the state of the Bulgarian and global economies were discussed at a number of discussions and published in the mass media.

In 2018 representatives of the Programme continued participating actively in public discussions about topical public issues in the field of early child development, education and prevention of early school leaving, organized by institutions, organizations and networks such as: Ministry of Education, Trust for Social Achievement, UNICEF, World Bank, Amalipe Center for Interethnic Dialogue and Tolerance, For our Children Foundation, etc.

1 The study was carried out together with the European Policies Programme

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Programme representatives took active part in a programme for distance training of civic organizations by webinars, organized by the programme Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria under the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism. In 2018 the agreement with the National Statistical Institute was continued for provision and processing of anonymized individual data from the Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) for Bulgaria, including an indicator of the ethnic self-determination of the respondents. The data were used for a preliminary analysis of the situation of the Roma households with children. The analysis will be incorporated in a big report on the impact of early childhood development policies on Roma children.

Within a contract with the Central European University, OSI-Sofia continued participating in the preparation of the civil monitoring report on Roma integration with a governance expert whose task is to support the organizations of all thematic fields preparing the Bulgarian part of the report and to review parts of the reports for countries of Western and Southern Europe.

Early learning and early childhood development In the fall of 2018 representatives of the programme participated actively in the activities of the working group developing the draft Strategy for Early Childhood Development as per order of October 1, 2018 of the minister of education and science. The plenary sessions and working subgroups on the structure, methodology and content of the strategy benefited from the experience of the team of Open Society Institute – Sofia from previous projects on early childhood development such as SABER-ECD (in partnership with the World Bank), etc. In 2018 the programme team completed and presented the drafts of analytical reports supporting advocacy activities aiming to encourage Roma participation in the early childhood development services within the Together for Strong Equal Start Project (of the Paruvipe programme, OSI-Budapest) with leading organization World without Borders, Stara Zagora. The reports emphasize on the financial barriers to the access to preschool education of the children of the most vulnerable families and outline the challenges to the early childhood development policy and the possible responses to them. In the field of early learning and early childhood development the programme team was assigned the task of preparing a report on early childhood development under the RECI programme (Roma Early Childhood Interventions) by the Roma Education Fund, UNICEF and Open Society Foundations. The repot will be prepared until the middle of 2019. School education activities Through the experts of Governance and Public Policies Programme Open Society Institute – Sofia continued participating with opinions and statements in the working group as a non-profit organization operating in the field of education and training, part of the monitoring mechanism with a right to advisory vote within the Monitoring Committee of Operational Programme Science and Education for Smart Growth for 2014-2020 programme period (OP

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SESG). The programme team participated particularly in the preparation of the opinions on the operations Active Integration in the in the Pre-school Education System, Support to Vulnerable Groups for Access to University Education - Phase 1, Integrated Measures to Improve the Access to Education and Pedagogical Staff Qualification – Phase 1, as well as on procedural issues related to the optimization of the work of the Monitoring Committee. Programme representatives took part in the work of the committee monitoring the finishing project BG05M2OP001-2.004-0004 Developing Pupils' Abilities and Increasing their Motivation to Learn through Activities that Develop Specific Knowledge, Skills, and Competencies (YOUR CLASS) - Phase 1.

Trainings were completed In 2018, which had been assigned by contract between the Centre

for Educational Integration of Children and Students from Ethnic Minorities at the Ministry

of Education and Open Society Institute – Sofia Foundation. Within the partner initiative the

team of OSI-Sofia held the training course Innovative Models and Approaches for Prevention

of Early School Leaving developed especially for the purposes of the Bulgarian pre-school

and school education system and in compliance with the requirements of the Pre-school and

School Education Act and the regulations related thereto. The course was oriented towards

the needs of the pedagogical experts in kindergartens and in primary school education. The

trainings focused on applied knowledge and skills based on and building upon participants’

personal experience and needs in the field of early school prevention, mapping and

mobilizing support of different school community participants – with an emphasis on family

and community participation and the work with the parents. The direct beneficiaries were

23 educational mediators and 95 teachers of the regions of Montana, Shumen, Ruse, Plovdiv

and Burgas. Almost 90% of the pedagogical experts completed the training with two credit

certificates as per the Pre-school and School Education Act and Ordinance No.

12/01.09.2016 regarding the status of the professional development of teachers, principals

and other pedagogical experts.

A report was produced in 2018 about the evaluation of Teach for Bulgaria – one of the biggest programmes aimed at attracting teachers to the field of school education. The programme assessment was based on statistical methods for comparative evaluation of the added value and analysis of the effectiveness of various teaching practices. The first version of the report was approved by the contracting authority, including by evaluation experts from the USA. In 2019 a reviewing procedure will be performed by professors of a Dutch and an American university and the results will be presented to a wide public – experts and representatives of the academic community. In 2018 OSI-Sofia continued participating in the Innovative Schools Committee established to promote innovations in the Bulgarian secondary education. The Committee included experts of the Ministry of Education, as well as representatives of leading academic institutions, of the business and NGOs. The Committee appointed the representative of OSI-Sofia external arbiter on innovation assessment. OSI-Sofia prepared an analysis of the first two years since the introduction of the Programme for Innovations in Secondary Education and in December 2018 presented the results at a big conference on innovations in education with over 600 participants organized by the Ministry of Education.

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Boyan Zahariev, Director of Governance and Public Policies Programme, at the National Forum for Innovations in Education; Sofia, December 3, 2018

Activities in the field of higher education and scientific research policies

In 2018 the consortium led by OSI-Sofia prepared the updated annual edition of the Bulgarian University Ranking System. Developed with the participation of OSI-Sofia, the Ranking System is establishing itself as an important tool in the field of university education and is acknowledged by prestigious international academic publications. In Global Ratings and Geopolitics of Higher Education2 published in 2017 by one of the leading academic publishers - Routledge, the Bulgarian ranking system was defined as truly innovative and first in the world of the so-called third wave of national ratings.

2 Hazelkorn, E. (ed.) 2017. Global Rankings and the Geopolitics of Higher Education. Understanding the

influence and impact of rankings on higher education, policy and society. Routledge.

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Official presentation of the data of the Bulgarian University Ranking System; Sofia, December 20, 2018

Project and expert activities carried out jointly with other programmes of OSI-Sofia

In 2018 analyses of the confidence in NGOs and the public attitude towards NGOs were prepared and published, based on data of a national representative survey carried out by Open Society Institute – Sofia in April 2018.

In 2018 the Programme continued its active cooperation with the Roma Programme in implementation of the Bridge to Business initiative. The research component of Bridge to Business collected data about the participants in the programme and the special control group. In 2019 two evaluation reports are going to be published – one focused on the business practices of hiring persons of vulnerable groups, the other – on the results of Bridge to Business on the young people included in the programme.

Within the educational component I graduate – I succeed! of Bridge to Business in 2018 continued the work on improving the motivation and extra classes in the matriculation exams of high school students from the eleventh and twelfth grade of 6 partner schools in Sopot, Sofia, Stara Zagora, Strazhitsa and the village of Nikola Kozlevo. The state matriculation exams showed that all schools improved the results of their last-year students. In four of the partner schools the support continues in 2018/2019 school year.

6. LEGAL PROGRAMME The Legal Programme of Open Society Institute – Sofia aims at the application of the principles of rule of law and fundamental human rights protection and supports the reforms guaranteeing Bulgarian citizens better access to justice. The Programme has three thematic

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priorities: rule of law, fundamental human rights and transparency and accountability of the institutions. Rule of Law The Programme monitors and evaluates on a regular basis the public attitudes towards the core EU values: democracy, rule of law and fundamental human rights protection. The study allows for identification of the risks to the practical application of these values in Bulgaria and public announcement of threats related to them. In 2018 the data of the third national representative sociological survey on the topic were processed. The results are summarized in the report Democracy and Civil Participation. Public Attitudes towards Democracy, Rule of Law and Fundamental Human Rights in 2018, which is going to be published in the first half of 2019. Fundamental Human Rights The end of January 2018 saw the completion of the 18-month project Improving Access to Legal Aid in the Pre-trial Phase of Criminal Proceedings in Bulgaria funded by the European Union under the Justice Programme 2014-2020. It was implemented in partnership between Open Society Institute – Sofia, the National Legal Aid Bureau and with the participation of the Legal Aid Board of Holland as an associated partner. Within the initiative two studies were carried out and draft standards developed regarding the provision of legal aid in the pre-trial phase of criminal proceedings in order to facilitate the work of the National Legal Aid Bureau and the local legal boards in evaluating the quality of the legal aid provided.

Organization Theme Amount in EUR

National Legal Aid

Bureau Project partner 2374,46

In order to popularize the results of the project among the professional public, on November 27, 2018 the Legal Programme organized together with Krastyo Tsonchev Lawyer Training Center a round table to present one of its main products – the brochure Guidelines for Police Detainees and Defendants in the Pre-trial Phase of Criminal Proceedings. The brochure explains in plain language the fundamental rights of defendants and detainees in relation to criminal proceedings and specifies the minimum action they should expect from their lawyer.

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Presentation of the brochure Guidelines for Police Detainees and Defendants in the Pre-trial Phase of Criminal Proceedings; Sofia, November 27, 2018

In 2018 the Programme organized the fourth students’ paper contest in on a topic related to the protection of the fundamental human rights. By this contest the Programme aims at raising the awareness of law students about the issue and facilitating students’ research. In 2018 the contest was dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the papers were entitled: Problems with the Legal Status of Persons with Intellectual Difficulties and Psychosocial Disorders in Bulgaria. A total of eight students’ papers were received from five law faculties and the awards went to law students of Plovdiv University and New Bulgarian University. The Programme monitors ana analyzes the threats to the fundamental human rights related to hate speech in the Bulgarian public debate. In 2018 data were collected and the results summarized of the fourth regular study on the topic, which was published on December 14, 2018 under the title Public Attitudes towards Hate Speech in Bulgaria 2018. Transparency and Accountability of the Institutions In the second half of 2018 the Programme started working oх a comparative legal study of the professional profiles and the selection procedure of prosecutors general in the EU member states. The study aims at informing the public and expert debate in Bulgaria about the forthcoming election of a new prosecutor general of the country, as well as at improving the transparency and accountability of the institution. The project What We (don’t) Know about Prosecutors General in the EU Member States is funded by grants from the Ministry of Interior of the Kingdom of Holland and the publication with the results from the study is going to be presented to the expert public in the beginning of 2019.

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The Programme continues collecting data about the regular monitoring and evaluation of the public costs for justice and public order within the third stage of the project The Price of Justice in Bulgaria.

7. PUBLIC DEBATE PROGRAMME

The Public Debate Programme works on encouraging the public debate on key issues concerning the state of democracy and human rights in Bulgaria mainly through carrying out sociological surveys on public attitudes and publishing them, including on the OpenData.bg platform and on the Foundation’s website. In 2018 the Public Debate Programme supported a field study in Bulgaria entitled Public Opinion and Social Attitudes, Spring 2018. The data were used in the publication of a series of analytical materials, including in partnership with other programmes of the institute. Within the project Democracy, Fundamental Rights and Civic Participation 2018 started the preparation and publication of reports in Bulgarian and English with the results from three studies of the Institute: Confidence in the Non-governmental Organizations in Bulgaria, Public Attitudes towards Hate Speech in Bulgaria 2018, as well as Democracy and Civic Participation. Public Attitudes towards Democracy, the Rule of Law and Human Rights in Bulgaria in 2018, which are going to be published in 2019. Based on data from the field studies conducted within the Programme other analytical materials were also published among which Demography of Reading in Bulgaria. In 2018 the publication of the article: From Conceptualisation to Measurement of Higher Education as a Common Good: Challenges and Possibilities in Higher Education magazine of Springer publishing company was supported. In 2018 the website of Open Society Institute – Sofia at osis.bg was completely updated.

8. ROMA PROGRAMME

In 2018 the Roma Programme continued pursuing its strategic aims and priorities and was involved in the implementation of the following initiatives: Initiatives aimed at the establishment of interethnic tolerance and overcoming of the negative public attitudes towards the Roma people: Bridge to Business – An Initiative for Improving the Access of Young People of Roma Origin to Employment in the Private Sector of Bulgaria and Hungary; Ref. No. VS/2016/0236 The project was launched at the end of 2016 and is carried out with the support of the EU Employment and Social Innovation (EaSI) programme 2014-2020. It is implemented in partnership with the Central European University and Autonomia Foundation, Hungary. Bridge to Business aims to facilitate the access of young Roma (aged 18-35), who have at least high school education and passed their school-leaving exams, to highly qualified positions in the private sector that correspond to their education and qualification. At the

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same time the project is working with senior high school students in Sopot, Stara Zagora, Sofia, Strazhitsa and Nikola Kozlevo, helping them pass the final certification examinations. Another element of the programme is oriented towards cooperation with private companies to provide a more favorable environment and apply staff employment policies which would provide better access to jobs for qualified Roma in corporate environment in Bulgaria. Within the project and in partnership with other NGOs and business companies the Diversity Works initiative was developed, which turned into a platform for sharing experience and ideas in terms of diversity in business companies. Two events were held in 2018 in which participated representatives of over fifty Bulgarian and foreign companies, non-governmental organizations, diplomatic delegations and public institutions. Web: Bridge to Business: http://bridgetobusiness.eu Diversity Works: https://diversitypaysoff.eu/ Facebook: Bridge to Business: https://www.facebook.com/bridgetobusiness.eu/ Diversity Works: https://www.facebook.com/diversitypaysoff/

First meeting of Diversity Works initiative. To the right H. E. Eric Rubin, US ambassador to Bulgaria, welcoming the participants in the event; Sofia, June 11, 2018

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Organization Description Amount in EUR

Autonomia Foundation, Hungary Partner in the implementation of the project 11 3250.4

Central European University

Partner in the implementation of the project 56 658.41

Initiatives for Roma capacity building for full participation in public life Scholarship programme students of Roma origin at Bulgarian universities Open Society Institute - Sofia is cooperating with Roma Education Fund to provide scholarships to young people of Roma origin. Two schemes were announced in 2018: RMUSP (Roma Memorial University Scholarship Program) and RHSP (Roma Health Scholarship Program). In the period April-May 2018 an information campaign was conducted to provide opportunities for receiving scholarships and over 150 people were reached through meetings held in Pazardzhik, Sopot, Teteven, Omurtag, Montana and Sofia. For 2018-2019 academic year 357 applications were received under the RMUSP scheme, of which 171 were approved. The RHSP applicants were 24, of whom 15 were approved. The Roma Programme is cooperating with the Public Health Program of OSFs and the Roma Education Fund organized the mentorship of medical students of Roma origin with RHSP scholarships. Students and mentors have also the opportunity of receiving financial support for participation in thematic medical events – conferences, symposia, workshops, etc. In 2018 students and mentors participated in the annual conference of the European Public Health Association, as well as in events of national importance and international specialized medical seminars and symposia.

Supported participation of students and mentors in health conferences Amount in

EUR

Diana Milkova Asenova 1 530.43

Mariela Stefanova Kamburova 1 580.00

Momchil Kostov Baev 1 378.00

Petar Mihaylov Georgiev 2 280.00

GEORGI STOYTCHEV

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

OPEN SOCIETY INSTITUTE – SOFIA FOUNDATION