EESC Employers' Group member Georgi Stoev awarded with the Order of the Rising Sun

For his contribution to strengthening bilateral relations between Japan and Bulgaria, Georgi Stoev was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, by the Ambassador of Japan to Bulgaria Masato Watanabe. The Order of the Rising Sun is the highest Japanese Orders for civil and military merits awarded to foreign nationals.

Mr Stoev's contributions to promoting economic exchange between Bulgaria and Japan and his engagement and efforts in deepening the understanding between the two countries were awarded on 24 January at the Residence of the Japanese Ambassador in Sofia. For more than two decades, Mr Stoev has encouraged professional education and training for Bulgarians in Japan through his membership in the European Association of Overseas Training Scholarships and as a member of the board of directors of the World Network of Friendship in Japan.

Jacek Krawczyk, President of the EESC Employers' Group, attended the ceremony and in his speech emphasised the valuable work that Mr Stoev did as a member of the EU-Japan follow-up Committee and the EU Domestic Advisory Group under the EU-Korea FTA. He also highlighted the importance of the EU-Japan EPA for boosting mutual trade and investment, improving job opportunities and helping to strengthen international rules and standards.

Besides Mr Stoev's engagement as an EESC Employers' Group member, he is also a member of the Board of Directors at the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), in which he served as a Deputy Chairman for 20 years. Alongside other functions and memberships, he is also chairman of the Trade and Investment Committee and member of the Budgetary Committee of Eurochambres. His expertise on Japan and dedicated work as an expert in joint projects with the Bank of Tokyo and Kobe Steel and as the chairman of the Bulgarian-Japanese Economic Council of BCCI have been acknowledged by the special award of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan in 2012.