The crisis as an opportunity

The crisis triggered by the spread of COVID-19 with its health, social and economic dimensions has challenged the way a huge number of organisations operate, exacerbated existing problems and highlighted the need for entirely new services. It has led both to the mobilisation of people, organisations and institutions to help and support to overcome the crisis and its consequences, and to the distancing and disintegration of existing teams and communities.

The pandemic has shown us how important digital assets are and how networks, connectivity, data and good digital skills underpin the economy and society. Digital technologies play a key role in economic recovery.

That’s why we created the pilot programme CRISIS AS AN OPPORTUNITY to support civil society organisations, social enterprises, micro-enterprises, to help their operations and businesses be more adaptive and more resilient. It is important that this process is constantly accompanied by community building in a period when, as the emergency has shown, community and social cohesion were the only way to overcome the challenges.

The proposed Crisis as an Opportunity Programme included two strands:

– Strand 1: Digital adaptation and sustainability of organisations

– Strand 2: Community development

Strand 1: Digital adaptation and sustainability of organisations

It aimed to support financially and methodologically the transformation of existing organisations towards more sustainable digital operating models and to support the expansion of their on-line activities by adapting new business models for the delivery of goods and services, as well as the transformation of activities in line with the new opportunities provided by technological developments.

The programme supported activities to:

The development of new digital models and approaches to work aimed at the beneficiaries of the organisations, the users of services, the consumers of the goods that the organisations create.
Adaptation to digital representation of the organisation’s activities, creating new or improving digital services provided by organisations.
Training and building a skilled team to carry out core or complementary activities of the organisation that are related to offering/providing digital products and services.
The support offered was:

Grant support per project up to 20 000 BGN.
Mentoring and methodological support for project implementation.
Strand 2: Community development

– Strand 1: Digital adaptation and sustainability of organisations

– Strand 2: Community development

Strand 1: Digital adaptation and sustainability of organisations

It aimed to support financially and methodologically the transformation of existing organisations towards more sustainable digital operating models and to support the expansion of their on-line activities by adapting new business models for the delivery of goods and services, as well as the transformation of activities in line with the new opportunities provided by technological developments.

The programme supported activities to:

The development of new digital models and approaches to work aimed at the beneficiaries of the organisations, the users of services, the consumers of the goods that the organisations create.
Adaptation to digital representation of the organisation’s activities, creating new or improving digital services provided by organisations.
Training and building a skilled team to carry out core or complementary activities of the organisation that are related to offering/providing digital products and services.
The support offered was:

Grant support per project up to 20 000 BGN.
Mentoring and methodological support for project implementation.
Strand 2: Community development