Eighteen Social Enterprises in Eight Balkan Region Countries Were Founded within a Caritas Initiative

ELBA – Social Economy Development in Southeast Europe is a joint initiative of Caritas organizations from Europe where Caritas Bulgaria is a key participant. Within the initiative, eighteen social enterprises have been founded in eight countries from the Balkan region. A monitoring system has been worked out where 33 social enterprises are included.

These were some of the reported results at the international conference held in Rome between 27-28 of February 2019. The following organizations were represented at the event: Caritas Bulgaria, Caritas Kosovo, Caritas Albania, Caritas Greece, Caritas Montenegro, Caritas North Macedonia, Caritas Serbia, Caritas Bosnia and Herzegovina, Caritas Spain, Caritas Italy, Caritas Austria, Caritas France and Catholic Relief Services.

During the conference, the participants discussed the achievements of the ELBA: Social Economy Development in South Eastern Europe joint project activities. They shared experience on the foundation and development of already existing Caritas social enterprises, the difficulties they faced and the ways to overcome them. They also planned future joint actions to continue addressing poverty by developing social enterprises in Southeast Europe.

ELBA: Social Economy Development in South Eastern Europe is a joint initiative of eight Caritas organizations on the Balkans, including Caritas Bulgaria. The activities aim at raising awareness about the social economy on the Balkans and building a favorable environment for the development of social enterprises in the region. The initiative is supported by Caritas Italy, Caritas Spain, Caritas France and Catholic Charities.