Programme

09:00 – 09:30 | Welcome coffee

09:30 – 10:00| Opening session

  • Petar Vitanov, Chairperson of the Committee on Foreign Policy in the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria
  • Zornitsa Roussinova, President of the Economic and Social Council of Bulgaria 
  • Tsvetan Simeonov, Chair of the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) 
  • María del Carmen Barrera Chamorro, Chair of the EESC Group on the European Citizens’ Initiative 

10:00 – 10:45 | What is the ECI and how does it work in practice?

  • European Commission: Adriana Mungiu (Head of ECI Sector, Secretariat-General of the European Commission)
  • ECI Forum: Assya Kavrakova (Executive Director, European Citizen Action Service (ECAS)) 
  • European Economic and Social Committee: María del Carmen Barrera Chamorro, Chair of the EESC Group on the European Citizens’ Initiative
  • Successful ECI on "My Voice, My Choice"

Coffee break

11:00 – 12:15 | What is the state of play in Bulgaria and how to improve it?

Round table debate with contributions by stakeholders, free discussion and Q&A round:

  • National Contact Point(s) for ECI  
  • ECI ambassadors and communicators in Bulgaria 
  • Economic and Social Council of the Republic of Bulgaria 
  • EC and EP representations 
  • CoR / Local government   
  • Civil Society Organisations 
  • Youth representatives 
  • Universities 

12:15 – 12:30 | Conclusions

12:30 – 14:00 | Networking lunch