The Bulgarian Family Planning and Sexual Health Association (BFPA) conducted on May 18-19, 2018 the first for this year training of trainers on health and sexuality education „About the Shared Knowledge”. High school students from 8th to 11th grade from Sofia, Pleven, Plovdiv, Ruse, Stara Zagora, Troyan and Gorna Oryahovitza were introduced to topics connected with prevention of reproductive health and effective ways for delivering health messages to their peers. The participants were from schools with different profile – entrepreneurship, math, natural science, informatics, humanities…, and what united them was the expectation to gain new knowledge and make new friends. „How can one understand that he/she is suffering from Syphilis?”, „Which of the sources of information are credible?” and „Is it possible an person living with HIV to have life expectancy as long as an uninfected one?” – were some of the questions during the sessions.
BFPA presents its newest edition: a leaflet on Fake news
Sofia, May 17 2018
A new edition with relevant information to recognize fake news was published by the Bulgarian Family Planning and Sexual Health Association (BFPA). Author of the text is the journalist Polina Paunova and of the drawings – the artist Kremena Koeva. The leaflet has a focus to health, but treats fake news and disinformation as a whole. It is targeting young people, but is useful and appropriate for all age groups. „Fake News draw attention. They are scandalous. Shocking. Spicy. They are often about sex. Or about money. Or about death. Or about the three of the above together. Fake news are “grandiose”, “shocking” and reveal “a secret”. They are presented in a way that make you feel lost or shake your understanding of the world, on politics, medicine, authorities and celebrities. ... they discredit people, sometimes even entire countries. They do not have authors, but use names. They do not use factology, but simulate authenticity…“
Learning Action Partnership – Review of Opportunities for Future Collaborations
Sofia, May 16, 2018
New meeting of the Learning Action Partnership (LAP) was held on May 16, 2018 in Sofia. The participants made a review of what was done in the period between the last meeting up to now and discussed new working opportunities for the network. Ventzislav Kirkov, BFPA Program Manager and President of the Bulgarian Platform for International Development (BPID) presented the work of the Platform in the context of the Bulgarian Presidency of Council of EU, focusing his presentation at priority 16 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Different editions and initiatives of the LAP members were presented at the meeting. A proposal for collaboration with a Resource Centre against Sexual Violence in Concordia University in Montreal was discussed. The conception on working of the recently established ad hoc coalition on prevention of domestic violence and violence against women was presented shortly. LAP members were invited to apply for participation in the training for building narrative skills “Changing the narrative” organized by BFPA in October 2018 in Sofia with trainers form Columbia University.
„Condom with a Cause” with a Video to Support Health
Sofia, April 11, 2018
The campaign for responsible sexual behavior of the Bulgarian Family Planning and Sexual Health Association (BFPA) and Sexwell condoms “Condom with a Cause” (in BG) continues fundraising for buying quick tests, testing and counseling people in need. The launch of a video aiming to attract and engage more people to support the cause took place on April 11, 2018. The only way to prevent ourselves from sexual transmitted infections and to save our reproductive system is to have responsible sexual behavior.
BFPA in the training team at the NCCTHB Volunteer Academy 2018
Arbanasi, March 26-28, 2018
From March 26 to 28 in the village of Arbanasi, Veliko Turnovo region, took place the annual Volunteer Academy organized by the National Commission for Combattling Trafficking in Human Beings together with the Hanns Seidel Foundation and the Local Commission for Combattling Trafficking in Human Beings – Veliko Turnovo. This year special focus in the academy agenda is given to the prevention of trafficking for labor exploitation. The training brought together 52 young volunteers that work with the Local Commissions in Burgas, Blagoevgrad, Varna, Veliko Turnovo, Montana, Pazardjik, Pleven, Plovdiv and Sliven – some have not received training yet, some have been trained and themselves have implemented peer-to-peer trainings, and some are youngsters from vulnerable communities who were part of the focus groups formed during the labor trafficking prevention campaign.
On June 26th BFPA held its Annual General Meeting at which traditionally the members of the organization approved the report for the past year and discussed future plans and perspectives. The Meeting also approved the Code of Conduct, adopted by the Management Board of the Association. The pinnacle event was at the end of the General meeting on the pleasant Friday afternoon – handing out Signs of Honor to twelve people who through the years were part of the Management Board and long term volunteers of the Association. They are (in alphabetical order): Dr. Dora Mircheva, Elena Poptodorova, Dr. Ivan Dikov, Dr. Kalina Piperkova, Prof. Kuncho Chamov, Maria Kaloyanova, Prof. Milko Sirakov, Dr. Mugurdich Karakashyan, Prof. Radka Argirova, Dr. Raina Gurdeva, Dr. Sofia Stoimenova, Prof. Yuliana Marinova..
The first online (due to the Covid19 pandemic) meeting of the Learning Action Partnership (LAP) took place on May 27, 2020. Representatives of BFPA, Loveguide, Tulip Foundation, BYRC, WHO – Bulgaria, Know How Center for Alternative Care of Children of NBU, MLSP, NCCTHB, NCPHA, UNICEF, IOM, GERT Foundation, ARC Foundation, SAPI, PULSE Foundation, Roditeli Association Re-Act Association, WCIF. The agenda included review of what has been done from the latest meeting of the Partnership up to the moment, sharing the experience of members’ activities in the Covid19 pandemic, discussion for coordinating efforts of the group and maximum using the different resources. The work on developing new web resource platform up to the moment and the ‘small projects’ initiative in the frame of the project ‘The Ability to Change’ were presented. The projects in priority area ‘Changing community attitudes and ‘zero’ tolerance to sexual exploitation of children’ are to start in September.
The parents are unemployed. Several days ago one of the brothers has come from abroad, unfortunately with no money. All the family does not have the right to go out of home. They all are quarantined. One day while she is working in her cabinet Kina Asenova is hearing a kid crying on the street. She is going out to see what is happening and sees the family’s six-year old child shaking on the ground and screaming. She finds out that the boy wants a snack very much and the family cannot afford that kind of expense... She goes to the shop, buys a box of the snacks and gives it them. ‘The next day we started distributing food. We gave it away without judging people’s race. We give as well for mentally disabled and people with different diseases’. Kina is health mediator from 2008, but she works with people on different projects from the 2000s. People trust her. Her colleagues – Atanaska Mutafova, Asen Stoyanov, Atanas Atanasov, Ivan Ivanov and the mediators from Tundja Municipality daily do work in the villages Kukorevo, Kozarevo, Veselinovo, Drazhevo, Hadjidimovo. They work all day long, even on weekends. ‘Since Bulgaria declared state of emergency because of the Covid pandemic we are every day on the field, we give information on the infection, explain them why it’s important to stay at home. We are tracking people who came back from abroad and we make sure that they follow the quarantine guidelines. We have such people in almost every village.’
Sofia, May 18-19, 2018
Sofia, May 17 2018
Sofia, May 16, 2018
Arbanasi, March 26-28, 2018
