The Start of Public Forum Karlovo

Thursday, 01 June 2017

On May 31st in the Hall of the Municipal Council of Karlovo Municipality was held the first meeting of the newly founded Public Forum in the municipality. Its goal is establishment of Public Forum and announcement of first session of the Municipal Fund for support of local initiatives. The event is organized within the project "Active Communities: Building Capacity for Change" of Platform AGORA and Karlovo Municipality, supported by America for Bulgaria Foundation.

The Karlovo fund is the first one in a series of funds to be further established in twelve Bulgarian municipalities. The meeting opened the deputy-mayor of Karlovo Municipality, Mr. Anton Minev, who greeted the participants - representatives of educational and cultural organizations, mayors, local business, NGOs, Chitalishta and municipal councilors.

The Public Forum model was presented by Mrs. Iva Taralejkova, moderator of the first forum meeting and a chairperson of the Citizen Participation Forum who also contributed to the development of the fund regulations. She explained that the Public Forum is a citizen participation mechanism ensuring active contribution of residents to local policies for development. She emphasized on its opportunity to engage diverse civil society structures into the process, too.

Next, Mr. Emilia Lissichkova, Platform AGORA's Chairperson spoke about the essence of the Municipal Fund for Local Initiatives - Karlovo, pointing out that the financial resource of the fund will be a mix of municipal budget funds, donations and sponsorship. The Fund will support initiatives fostering the civil society development and improving the living environment for the locals in a consistent and sustainable way.

During the meeting the following documents were discussed: regulations for the organization, operation and management of the Municipal Fund for local initiatives - Karlovo, guidelines with selection criteria and an application form.

As a result of the two hour meeting and the discussions held, suggestions were made by the forum participants for amendments to the draft documents. Public Forum Karlovo decided June 30, 2017 to be the date of their next meeting when the submitted applications for the first session of the fund will be discussed and approved. The first session of the fund is dedicated to 180th anniversary of Vasil Levski's birth.

Support for Platform AGORA is provided by the America for Bulgaria Foundation. The statements and opinions expressed herein are solely those of Platform AGORA and do not necessarily reflect the views of the America for Bulgaria Foundation or its affiliates.