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FICE Bulgaria - project Inclusion Without Borders

3/15/21, 2:31 PM
FICE Bulgaria - project Inclusion Without Borders

Bulgaria continues to have the highest percentage of people at  risk of poverty and social exclusion among the EU members - 32.1% (Eurostat, 2020). A large portion of them are children and youth (32.8 % of the people under 16 and 35.6 % for people 16 to 24, Eurostat, 2020). The COVID-19 pandemic and the related restrictions have exacerbated this situation, especially in the age group 16 to 24.


This requires that new strategies for countering the problems of vulnerable groups are developed, including strategies for improving the qualifications of professionals, working with them. To meet the needs of children, youth and their families, who are from vulnerable backgrounds, the professionals in the field of social support (social workers, psychologists, pedagogues, mediators, etc.) need to improve their knowledge, skills and competences, as well as to acquire new methods and techniques for helping people at risk of social exclusion.


FICE-Bulgaria in partnership with “KOINE AEQUALITAS”, Pamplona, Spain, will realize the Erasmus+ funded project Inclusion without borders. The activities were planned to take place in March 2020, but due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, they had to be postponed. The mobilities in the project will finally be realized in May 2021.


The project aims to increase the capacity of FICE-Bulgaria for providing high quality adult trainings, in accordance with current social problems.


The specific goals of the project include:

1.Increasing the knowledge, skills and competences of the training staff of FICE-Bulgaria for provision of high quality trainings, in accordance with the needs of the organization’s trainees.

2.Modernizing the professional environment in the organization by incorporating an effective model for quality management of training activities.

3.Improving the foreign language competences of the trainers of FICE-Bulgaria.

4.Improving the internalization strategies of the organization.


To achieve these goals, FICE-Bulgaria will realize a mobility for participation in two structured courses in Pamplona, Spain, provided by the partner organization “KOINE AEQUALITAS” Foundation:

-“Community development and mediation. Social and labor counselling of children and youth from disadvantaged backgrounds”

-“Excellence model of the European Fund for Quality Management. Using the Model for quality management of the educational processes”.


The participants in the mobility are 5 adult trainers, selected among the members of FICE-Bulgaria. They are experts with long-term experience as adult trainers on various topics  in the field of social work and psychology. Their еducation is in the field social work, psychology or pedagogy and they have practical experience in direct work with children and young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.


As a result of the newly acquired knowledge, skills and competences, the FICE-Bulgaria trainers will be able to have a greater impact on a broader group of professionals in the social field and contribute to increasing their knowledge and developing their skills for implementing new approaches for work with people from disadvantaged backgrounds, including personal qualities, such as sensitivity, tolerance, empathy, etc.  After taking part in the mobilities, they will develop together a new training programme “Community development and mediation. Social and labor counselling of children and youth from disadvantaged backgrounds”. and will update the existent quality assurance system of FICE-Bulgaria, incorporating elements of the Excellence model of the European Fund for Quality Management.


On the other hand, as a result of the improved access of Bulgarian professionals to high quality continuing trainings for children, youth and their families who are in vulnerable situations, will receive more adequate support and will have improved opportunities for social and labor realization.


*Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

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