Ekaterina Karavelova Foundation works in three main areas: “Community” through the social format “SHE in Bulgaria”, “Development” through the personal development program “SHE is ME” and “Policies”
The activities in the field of “Policies” developed as a natural continuation of the community work of the organization. Many times during events we have received questions about whether we could address various issues that affect women and we do so by participating in public consultations, preparing positions and reports on equality between women and men in the country.
Our advocacy work is based on the belief that women have an important role to play in peace and security, as well as in all other topics on society’s agenda. In 2019 we took an active part in the working group “Women, Peace and Security” at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
As a member of the working group, the foundation advocated for special emphasis on the needs of refugee and migrant women in Bulgaria, as well as for the development of a program for training and empowerment of Roma and Bulgarian women to be mediators in their communities in case of ethnic tension. The first Bulgarian National Action Plan on UN Security Council Resolution 1325 was adopted in March 2020. The plan recognizes the vulnerability of migrant and refugee women and includes special provisions on the gender dimension in integration policies.
In 2021, we actively participated in public consultations, preparing positions and advocating for more attention to the issue of low participation of women in politics. We became a member of the National Council for the Equality of Women and Men at the Council of Ministers and of the Regional Development Council for the South Central Region at the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works. We published a report on “Women’s participation in politics in Bulgaria” and began working on a sociological study of the needs and problems of women in the country.