The winners in the Best NGO Business Plan competition, organized by the Bulgarian Center for Not-for-Profit Law, together with UniCredit Bulbank, are three social enterprises with causes supporting children with special needs, young people with disabilities and young scientists. The award winners are: Shark Sports Club Association with their idea ParaKids - sportswear for special children, Association of Polar Early Career Scientists and their idea to create and sell education souvenirs Cool Antarctica providing information about Antarctica, preservation of the ice continent and its importance for the Earth, and Parallel World Association and their idea Mission Hope - creating a new product in their social enterprise Bookshop with mission Hope. A special price was awarded to NISHAN Association for their idea to create a construction toy and book called Traditional Home - a 3D model of Bulgarian traditional houses typical of the XIX century with information about the crafts, customs and traditions in the respective ethnographic area. A prize fund of BGN 16,000 was distributed among the first three social enterprises. In addition, one of the four distinguished organizations will receive the amount of BGN 5,000 from UniCredit Bulbank following the vote of all employees of the company.

Entrepreneurship for Non-profit Organizations program 2019/2020 is part of the Social Impact Banking initiative of the bank. A jury of experts comprising representatives of the business, the non-governmental sector and the media selected the winners among 11 finalists out of 67 organizations that applied to the program for social enterprises. The award ceremony took place last weekend at the two-day fair A Little Means a Lot in Sofia.  Fourteen social enterprises from all over Bulgaria took part in the fair presenting their hand-made products. The profit from the sale will be used to support important social causes.