Social Entrepreneurship

The seventh and last offline training of the School of Fundraising was dedicated to international fundraising. Under the guidance of Hanna Baranouskaya, expert from the human rights organization “Human Constanta”, participants once again examined the work with international donors and focused on important aspects of this work, and had a number of effective practical sessions.

On November 18, the first annual social entrepreneurship training programme Biz4all came to its conclusion. The final event brought the 25 participating teams together in the conference hall “Tsmoki Minsk”, where they pitched their projects to a professional jury.

In early 2017, the Research Institute of the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus  set up a working group to study the development of social entrepreneurship in the country. By the end of the year, these experts will present the results of their research and draw up recommendations on the need for legislative regulation of social entrepreneurship in Belarus. Representatives of civil society organizations and social entrepreneurs also take part in the work of specialists of the Research Institute of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus.

The inclusive kitchen project, which Olga Stefniak brought to the EU-funded Biz4all "Social Entrepreneurship Incubator" programme, was originally developed by her daughters Yelena and Yulia. The girls took part in the First Social Entrepreneurship School for Teenagers "SEI Youth: My First Business", organized by ODB Brussels in cooperation with Belarusian Youth Public Union "New Faces". Olga got involved into her daughters’ project, and they worked as a united and cohesive team during Biz4all.

On September 4, with support from the Germany's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Minsk hosted a training on effective communication and successful cooperation between NGOs and business enterprises. The event was organized by ODB Brussels and the German Society for International Education and Cooperation “Koopp Forum International”, with technical and information support from human rights organization “Human Constanta”. More than 30 participants came to listen about real Belarusian cases, meet experts and learn from their experience, in order to use it in development of their own projects.

At the end of the last week,  Minsk Johannes Rau International Centre for Education and Exchange brought together 30 representatives of civil society organizations and initiatives for an international seminar, where they discussed best practices of advocacy and cooperation with the authorities. The event was organized by ODB Brussels and the German Society for International Education and Cooperation “Koopp Forum International”, with technical and information support from human rights organization “https://www.humanconstanta.by/www.humanconstanta.by/”.

One of the experts at the training on effective communication and successful communication of the NGOs with business, which was held in Minsk on September 4 with support from the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was Katsiaryna Kaurova, co-founder of “Nashi Maistry” (“Our Craftsmen”) social enterprise and the Katsiaryna Kaurova Family Centre. The training was organized by ODB Brussels and the German Society for International Education and Cooperation “Koopp Forum International”, with technical and information support from “Human Constanta”, a human rights organization.

On August, 29-30, the Berlin Social Innovation School "Eastern Partnership" and ODB Brussels organized an intensive course on green economy and social innovation in Hrodna. The event brought together more than 30 participants from all over the country. These are people working to develop the green economy in Belarus: production and reproduction of vermicompost, promotion of EM preparations (those containing effective microorganisms), restoration of fertile soil lands, creation of the first landscape park in the country, and journalism for a green portal.

On October 7, within the framework of the “CSOs Resource Centre“ programme and with support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairds of Germany, a school of fundraising was launched in Minsk. The school was organized by ODB Brussels in partnership with the Belarusian human rights organization “Human Constanta” and "Koopp Forum International”. The first of the School’s seven planned training sessions was dedicated to the various types of fundraising. The not-so-familiar-yet word “fundraising”, as Belarusian participants found, means “activities to attract funds and resources”.

Within the framework of the EU-funded Biz4all Social Entrepreneurship Incubator programme, which is implemented by ODB Brussels in partnership with TNU Network University, Natallia Tarasava and a team of enthusiasts from Mahileu have presented their project “ProDobro”  (literally translated as “About Kindness”), which aims to open a pet store with a constant showcase of shelter animals to find them a permanent home and a loving family.