Deputy Minister Shtonova talked with representatives of one of the leading German organizations ‘Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund’ (ASB), which works in the field of philanthropy and social assistance.
‘The Federal Republic of Germany is a major foreign trade partner of Bulgaria, it is very important that the cooperation between us is not only in the economic sphere, but also in other spheres that connect us’, Deputy Minister Shtonova said. She added that the Ministry for Economy and Industry provides full assistance to German investors in Bulgaria in the implementation of their projects. We are also focusing our efforts on new forms of cooperation on strategically important topics such as digitalization, innovation, artificial intelligence, start-ups, Deputy Minister Shtonova said.
She confirmed the readiness of the Ministry to assist through our Trade and Economic Affairs Offices (TEAO) to expand cooperation between Bulgarian and German organizations.
The Vice-Chairman of the Management Board of ASB Hamburg, Günter Arndt, and his colleagues are in Bulgaria to get acquainted with the opportunities for cooperation in various areas, one of which is the training of personnel. He expressed his satisfaction with the support the organisation receives from the TEAO Hamburg. As a result of the joint work of ASV and TEAO, the first 4 Bulgarian multi-profile hospitals have already received donations of hospital beds and medical equipment.
Günter Arndt expressed his readiness to discuss with the Bulgarian institutions the possibilities for organizing and conducting trainings in Bulgaria on various topics, as well as several weeks of practice in the structures of the organization in Germany.
ASB is a non-governmental organization with a membership of over 1.4 million, consisting of 16 regional associations, 205 regional and local associations and 125 limited liability companies. Around 50 000 people are employed full-time in it, over 20 000 are volunteers. ASB Hamburg Ortsverband Mitte was awarded within the framework of the initiative ‘Start social Bundespreises 2022/23’ personally by the Federal Chancellor of Germany, Mr. Olaf Scholz.
