The operational mechanism of the Fund for Support of Social Entrepreneurship in Belarus is planned to be developed by the end of 2019 within the framework of the project "Support for Local Economic Development in the Republic of Belarus". This was reported to a BELTA correspondent by project thematic coordinator Natalia Adamchik today during a training seminar for participants of the competition of initiatives aimed at developing entrepreneurship support infrastructure.
The project is implemented by the United Nations Development Programme in partnership with the Ministry of Economy of Belarus and is funded by the European Union. It is envisaged to allocate funds to support business projects and enterprises whose activities are related to solving socially significant problems. This may include issues of socially vulnerable population groups, including persons with disabilities, young mothers facing difficulties in finding employment after maternity leave, and projects for the employment of youth and elderly citizens. Following the activities of the working group with the involvement of representatives of interested ministries and departments, as well as international experts, it is planned to develop the fund's operational mechanism. The total amount of financial support for social entrepreneurship will be $1.8 million, Natalia Adamchik reported.
The international technical assistance project "Support for Local Economic Development in the Republic of Belarus" was registered by the Ministry of Economy on February 1, 2019. It is designed for three years and aims to support various forms of economic initiative, competitiveness, and innovative activities for inclusive development at the local level. At the seminar in Vitebsk, participants became acquainted with the main stages of project work, mastered the skills of preparing an application and budget for an initiative to participate in the competition, as well as building effective partnerships.