“The Bulgarian School of Politics (BSoP) provides not only knowledge, but also creates new friendships. No matter how different the participants are, here they realize that only the tools are different, and the cause is one.” This was stated by the President of the National Assembly Mihaela Dotsova to the trainees of Class of 2026 of the National Program “Governing Skills”. On July 5, Dotsova opened the third course of the training, dedicated to national policies. In her emotional address, she recalled the time when she was a trainee in the National Program and emphasized that it was from this period that some of her best friendships remained. “Deputies and ministers easily come and go. The only thing that makes sense is to build,” said the President of the Parliament. Before the current class, Dotsova spoke about parliamentarism, expectations and realities in the work of the National Assembly. She explained the reasons for the changes made to the Rules of Organization and Activities of the National Assembly and emphasized that every parliament is like a living organism. In the ensuing discussion with the course participants, Dotsova answered questions related to the legislative process and shared her plans for creating a children’s visitor center in the library of the National Assembly. Among the lecturers in the third course of the National Program were also Konstantin Prodanov, Chairman of the Budget and Finance Committee of the National Assembly, and Prof. Rumen Gechev. The two presented the topic of the national budget as a tool for prioritizing public policies. Energy and the challenges facing the Bulgarian economy were discussed by Yavor Kuyumdzhiev and the Chairman of the Bulgarian Industrial Association Dobri Mitrev. Dr. Blagorodna Makeva, a lecturer at the Academy of the Ministry of Interior, and Yulia Andonova from the PULSE Foundation spoke on the topic of domestic violence as a public problem. The meeting with the host of Panorama, Boyko Vassilev, was particularly emotional for the course participants. He shared with them the intricacies of successful presentation in television formats and public debates.
Practical work in groups was an important part of the training. The course participants developed proposals for Bulgaria’s electricity mix, recognized forms of domestic violence and made a risk assessment based on a video story related to domestic violence. The simulation of a television debate on the topic “Foreign Policy and National Security: Where is Bulgaria’s Place in the Complicated International Environment?” gave the trainees the opportunity to develop skills in speaking in front of a camera, argumentation and defending a position in a public debate.
A special guest of the course participants in the third course of the training was Yoana Marinova, Executive Director of the “Lachezar Tsotsorkov” Foundation.
