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Description
The existing set of national security policies of Bulgaria is far from addressing the current issues facing the Bulgarian society and citizens. The main goal of the project is to support a decisive reform of security policies and help competent institutions adopt a modern type of assessment of risk factors and preventive actions. The reform will result in a more enlightened, rational and efficient addressing of risk factors and consequently humanization and socialization of security policies. This shift should 1) take security policies out of the limits of institutional encapsulation so that they 2) stop being an exclusive territory of party staff aiming at gaining populist vote, 3) open up as broadly as possible to citizen participation, 4) be a subject of constantly maintained public debate, 5) get closer to reality and the daily life of citizens and 6) be covered by the media for normal and not sensational reasons. The project will contribute to achieving this shift at three stages by 1) monitoring the existing policies and major shortcomings related to risk reduction, 2) developing and advocating a modern matrix of analysis, assessment and work with security risks, 3) building an overall modern security concept, 4) campaigning for its adoption by political and in particular parliamentary circles and 5) organizing training. The new security concept will be relevant for the broad public because security policies potentially concern everyone. The direct users of the project outcomes will be the political and government circles, civil society organizations and the media.
Summary of project results
The main goal of the project was to aid a decisive reform of security policies and upgrade the relevant institutions towards a modern type of risk assessment and preventive action. The initiative was designed to build up to a more enlightened, rational, and effective work with risk factors, which in turn will reduce reactive and repressive policies, establish a preventive and soft approach in their place, i.e lead to humanization and socialization of security policies.The project was achieving its goals with different type of activities – monitoring of the current national security policies, developing and advocating for the establishment of a contemporary matrix for analysis, assessment and work with security risks, developing a wholesome modern concept for security, discussions and training modules.Prospects beyond the funding period:The project sustainability is guaranteed by the essence of the activities themselves. The matrix of risk assessment as well as the National Security Strategy developed a completely new and modern conceptualization of the notion of risk and the ways of its management. This contemporary perception of risk and risk factors could be successfully used in the future security reforms in Bulgaria.The training module gives the opportunity for creating new courses dealing with the risk issues, which could be incorporated in the educational program of New Bulgarian University. The reader, uploaded on the NBU website, as well as the project website (www.securityrisks.eu/) are a sustainable source of information regarding the project topics.