The European Commission and the European Investment Bank (EIB) are organising the fifth edition of the flagship event FI Campus 2024 on 25, 26 and 27 June 2024 in Brussels. The Forum will again cover key topics related to the financial instruments for 2021-2027. The Showcase Award ceremony for successful implementation of the instruments is part of the programme. Having received awards in 2019 and 2023, Bulgaria will again compete for the prize, with two entries demonstrating the implementation of the Shared Risk Microcredit and the Urban Development Fund.
Entries are submitted in the form of short videos that showcase real-world impacts, success stories, and the tangible benefits of their financial instruments. Shortlisted submissions will be shown at the FI Campus 2024 event.
See the application for the implementation of Risk-Sharing Micro-Finance Facility with source Operational Programme Human Resources Development 2014 — 2020 co-financed from the European Social Fund. The Fund of Funds is implementing the instrument through our financial partner SIS Credit and in support of social entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship among vulnerable groups. The benefits for the business and the economy are presented through the expertise of our Executive Director Victoria Hristova, SIS Credit CEO Martina Grigorova and the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy. Part of the video are also the stories of Dimitar Borchev and Yanina Taneva, who run their own projects - a bakery in the village of Dren, which feeds a number of surrounding settlements, and a social project for hand knitting in one of the poorest regions of Bulgaria.
The second entry showcases the successful projects of our financial intermediary for urban development in Sofia and Southern Bulgaria, the Sustainable Cities Fund. In recent years, the fund has supported dozens of urban projects with €160 million in resources - from the improvement of green areas and public spaces, to the restoration of historic sites, city libraries, cultural centres, new sports facilities and much more. The video includes footage from the Plovdiv City Garden, the Vazrazhdane Park in Sofia, the Peyo Yavorov Library and Cultural Centre in Burgas, the largest climbing gym in the Balkans in Sofia, the Stara Zagora Zoo and more.
With the implemented projects in the cities of Sofia and Southern Bulgaria, Sustainable Cities Fund has achieved over 603,000 m2 of improved urban areas, streets and green spaces; over 113,000 m2 of commercial and industrial space; 11 projects involving cultural heritage sites of national importance, which expect an increased flow of over 600,000 additional tourists. The video also shows implemented green mobility projects, including the construction of Eldrive charging stations for electric vehicles. As a reminder, the Sustainable Cities Fund has already received the Fi-compass Showcase award twice (in 2019 and 2023).
See the full video of this year's application here.
The award ceremony will take place on 26 July in Brussels.
