November calendar of activities
Written by Scott Green, edited by Andrea Vushkova, photo by Sofia Development Association
Have you heard of the Bureau for Information and Services for Third Country Nationals? It’s an organization that is the result of the combined efforts, resources, and expertise of Sofia Municipality, Sofia Development Association, the Bulgarian Red Cross, “Vazrazhdane” Markets, UNHCR, and over 13 NGOs.
Last month in October, over 90 foreign nationals engaged the services of the Bureau for Information and Services for Third Country Nationals (BIStcn.) The most often sought-after service was legal advice, but they offer a diverse range of services: from accompanying translation at institutions, employment certificates, registering with a GP, receiving Covid vaccines and other medicine, textbooks, as well as food.
The BIStcn office is located at 111 Hristo Botev Street and is open from 10:00 to 17:30.
Their program calendar can be viewed in five different languages.
- You can find the English version here;
- За български натиснете тук;
- Version française est disponible ici;
متوفر بالعربیه هنا -
جهت دسترسی به نسخه فارسی اینجا کلیک کنید -
BIStcn was established under the #CONNECTION project funded by an EU grant and is run by the Sofia Development Association. An association whose mission is to:
- contribute to the development of Sofia as a modern European city, carrying the spirit of Bulgarian history and culture;
- aid the sustainable development, entrepreneurship, and initiative of Sofia and its citizens;
- promote the relationship between science, education, and business as a factor for dynamic and sustainable growth by attracting the expert and scientific potential for solving short, and long-term, problems of the city’s development;
- set up forums for continuous dialogue among civil society, business, state institutions, and the municipal administration in order to build a social environment that respects the ethnic and cultural diversity of the region and modern democratic values;
- form environmental culture and public milieu suitable for development, culture, and sports in Sofia;
- popularize urban development policies, train local communities and attract them for the mutual implementation of these policies.
Open Bulgaria and Sofia Development Association partner up to help foreigners feel safe and at home in Bulgaria. We hope that in November, and into the future, more and more foreigners will engage and benefit from the facilities offered and that more partner organizations will join the initiative.
