Description
As a result of the project the capacity to apply EE measures and RES will be raised for 300 employees of the local administration (municipalities, district authorities and state institutions). This way, a very serious challenge regarding the capacity of the local administration will be met. The problem is related to the lack of basic competence of the personnel responsible for EE, of the EE measures and RES and how to implement them in practice. The proposed courses are with strong practical orientation. They include 28 hours of theory and 7 hours of practical exercises. The theoretical part is oriented to practical problems connected with energy management and the measures for EE and RES. Aside from getting a recognized in EU certificate, the graduates will be able to implement the received knowledge in their everyday work – they will be able to perform energy management and planning, manage and report the EE and RES measures properly, they will be able to order and read with understanding energy audit reports and they will be competent in signing energy efficiency contracts.
Summary of project results
The purpose of the project is enhancing the capacity of local administration to take knowledge-based decisions while planning and implementing energy efficiency measures and RES. The project was carried out following the basic principles of quality implementation of the planned activities. The project activities and meetings of the project team, conducted with the purpose of project activities coordination, provided a clearer accountability, transparency and engagement of each member of the team. They also enable the establishment of better awareness and competence, better planning, readiness to solve problems, prevention of problems and difficulties. The general and specific objectives, in the activities "Trainings" and ”Information and publicity” which were executed successfully, will ensure sustainability of the results. This type of training gives an important prerequisite for long-term sustainability of the results locally. Conducted trainings increased capacity of 290 trained employees from the target group (administration at the local level - municipalities, regional governments, state institutions) in the field of energy efficiency measures and renewable energy sources. Through the knowledge and skills from the trainings they can apply what they have learned in their daily work. Received feedback from participants at the end of each training shows satisfaction with the training and trainers over 87%. The delivered outputs resulting from the visualization and publicity activity: over 500 representatives of the target group and project stakeholders were informed. Objectives achieved on activity "Information and publicity" would contribute to the long-term and sustainable development of the acquired knowledge in the field of EE and RES. The Norwegian know-how and good practices that was shared during the trainings contributed to the sustainability of the project results and complemented the WIFI trainers’ expertise.
Summary of bilateral results
The contribution of the partner is expressed both in the transfer of Norwegian know-how and good practices, and the exclusive cooperation regarding Activity "Information and publicity". Good cooperation between the expert from the Norwegian partner and the team of experts from WIFI Bulgaria facilitate workflow and lead to the achievement of high awareness among the participants in the trainings. The partnership within the project between the Beneficiary, WIFI Bulgaria and the partner by Norway, ENSI (Energy Saving International AS) based on signed Partnership agreement from 20.10.2015, has had a positive effect on the final results. The transferred know-how by ENSI enriches the educational program and trainings. Full involvement of the partner from the donor country, Norway has contributed to high results in the activity №4 "Information and publicity" and helped in achieving higher awareness about the funding program and the commitment of the EEA in the field of energy efficiency and renewables. The feedback from the training shows the need for practical knowledge and skills in the subject as one element of training that can be upgraded in the future.