What is the environment for CSOs in 2021 and 2022?

The better we understand our role as CSOs in changing the environment in Bulgaria, the clearer our horizon will be in the coming years. And so we ask: What was the environment for CSOs? What was the national policy for supporting civic initiatives? Have opportunities for more civic participation and advocacy increased? How did people in Bulgaria see the role of NGOs in 2022?

We seek answers to these questions with two surveys that show the big picture. NGO Sustainability Index for Bulgaria 2021 and Public Attitudes towards CSOs - Results from a nationally representative survey 2022, a survey conducted by Alpha Research for the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law.

Lyuben Panov from the European Center for Not-for-Profit Law presented the Sustainability Index for 2021 and Dr. Boryana Dimitrova, Alpha Research, gave details on the attitudes in 2022.

What is the index?

In a nutshell, the index measures how the environment is changing in 24 countries in Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia over 25 years. For Bulgaria, it is produced by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in partnership with the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law (BCNL). The main elements of the Index are: legal environment, organizational capacity, financial sustainability, advocacy, service delivery, infrastructure and public prestige. NGO representatives provide independent assessments, an editorial board in Washington adjusts, and USAID makes the final decision on assessments. What are the results for 2021? 

Lyuben Panov from the European Center for Not-for-Profit Law presented the Sustainability Index for 2021 and Dr. Boryana Dimitrova, Alpha Research, gave details on the attitudes in 2022.

What is the index?

"In Bulgaria there is not a boom of positive attitude towards CSOs and NGOs, but we manage to keep a good level because there are countries, like Hungary for example, which were an example of development and are now behind us. But the problem is still the relationship with the people, the attitude of the people towards the civil sector, which if it doesn't change, we can't change our position to a higher one."

The Alpha Research study reports both negative and positive trends, but these need to be built upon. 32.4% of the respondents are willing to confirm that there are civil associations in the country that represent and defend their positions, and assist in solving their problems. This is a two-fold increase from 2018, when only 16.3% said they agreed or somewhat agreed with such a statement. People who share the view that there is no NGO representing them in society decreased from 41.4 per cent in 2018 to 36.7 per cent in 2022.

"If we assume that trust in citizens is based on two pillars - personal trust and familiarity, the other part - are the people who have had no contacts, have not participated, do not know anyone from the sector - they are influenced, quite naturally, by what comes out as media and internet ratings. Then we must conclude that the civil sector must be more active and reach out to those who do not yet know it." 

The share of Bulgarians who view the inclusion of civil organizations in children's education is steadily increasing - from 23.7% in 2018 to 34.1% now. This means that the initiatives of the NGOs, accompanied by the more modern attitudes of the parents, are gradually removing the "stigma" from the entry of these organizations into the educational process, according to sociologists. 

For more examples of the state of the civil sector, see the Sustainability Index of NGOs in Bulgaria for 2021. Watch also the video of the presentation of the Index with the participation of civil organizations and representatives of state institutions - 09.12.2022 Moderator of the discussion: Iva Doichinova 

What is the environment for civil society organizations in 2021 and 2022? - YouTube