Caritas Bulgaria hosted an international meeting dedicated to the problems of disabled people

Caritas Bulgaria hosted an international meeting dedicated to the problems of disabled people and people with mental disorders. The meeting took place in Sofia, on June 19-23, 2017. More than 20 representatives of Caritas and civil organizations from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Serbia, Montenegro and Italy attended the venue. The meeting aimed to present good practices in the services and policies for the relevant vulnerable groups in Bulgaria.

During their stay, the participants visited and met the social services of Caritas in Bulgaria and of leading civil organizations engaged with disabled people and people with mental disorders, such as the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law, World of Mary Foundation, Global Initiative in Psychiatry, Listen to Yourself Foundation, municipal services for people with disabilities, etc.

Meetings were also held with representatives of the Agency for Disabled People, Agency for Social Assistance, Ministry of Labor and Social Policy. The policies on social inclusion of people with disabilities and people with mental disorders and the challenges in this field were largely discussed.

The visit is part of SOCITIES project, involving Caritas organizations and other civic organizations from seven Southeast European countries. The project aims to strengthen civil society and enhance the capacity of civil society organizations to set up partnership networks, advocacy and lobbying in the field of work with people with disabilities and people with mental disorders. Activities are focused mainly on five Western Balkan countries plus EU Member states Bulgaria and Italy, share their experience, train and show good practices in services for people with disabilities.