IOM Bulgaria, in partnership with UNHCR Bulgaria and the Ministry of Education and Science organised seminars in Burgas and Varna on the topic of “Access to education for children seeking or granted international or temporary protection”.

The events focused on the current challenges with integrating children fleeing the war in Ukraine in the Bulgarian education system. Both seminars sparked great interest and were attended by teachers in schools and kindergartens from the regions of Burgas and Varna as well as school principals, school psychologists and others.  

Ana Raykova from IOM Bulgaria moderated the seminars and opened the event by introducing the participants to the presenters and the topics of discussion. 

Following that, Iva Partsaleva from UNHCR Bulgaria presented the current situation with the Ukrainian refugees in Bulgaria and provided up-to-date statistics. She also acquainted the attendees with the difference between temporary protection and international protection. 

Later, Iva Partsaleva also gave a presentation on the legal framework, structure and mechanisms of the Bulgarian education system and the challenges and practical impediments for integrating the Ukrainian children in it as well as the necessary steps and procedures for school registration. The participants in both events were proactive and engaged in a full-bodied discussion on the subject, drawing from their own experience. 

Next to present was Iliya Tasev – Director of the Directorate for Public Health Protection and Health Control at the Ministry of Health. He informed the attendees about the important medical aspects related to integrating Ukrainian children in the Bulgarian education system, such as mandatory vaccinations. Furthermore, he focused on the importance of vaccinations for preventing the spread of various potentially harmful infectious diseases. 

Vladislav Damyanov from Caritas Sofia engaged the participants with his presentation on the peculiarities of teaching Bulgarian as a foreign language. He gave practical examples from his own experience as a Bulgarian language teacher to foreigners and acquainted the attendees with study materials, specifically designed for teaching Bulgarian to foreign nationals.  

Teodora Nikolova - a psychologist from IOM Bulgaria concluded the seminars with a presentation on working with children who have experienced trauma. She gave valuable advice to the participants about different methods and techniques for reducing stress in children and facilitating their recovery from a traumatic event.  

The event in Burgas was organised within the framework of the project "Raising the awareness of Bulgarian society and migrant communities in Bulgaria", funded by the National Programme of Bulgaria under the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund 2014-2020.