About us

The Economic and Social Council (ESC) of the Republic of Bulgaria was established by the Economic and Social Council of Bulgaria Act (promulgated in State Gazette No. 41/2001). ESC (also referred to as “the Council”) is a legal entity with budgetary dependence, with its seat in Sofia, and is a secondary budget authorizer of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria.

ESC is “a consultative body expressing the will of civil society structures on economic and social development”.

The mission of ESC of Bulgaria is not only to be a partner in the governance of the state, but also a powerful engine of organized civil society, driven by consensus, arguments, compromises, but always aimed at progress and justice.

With the establishment of ESC as a new institution of civil dialogue in the country, a new stage in the development of organized civil society has begun.

The Council was constituted as a functioning body when it held its first plenary session on 10 December 2003. On 25 January 2021, it began its fourth four-year mandate.

Bulgaria is the first country from the so-called “new” EU member states to create its own Economic and Social Council with a special law and without the participation of the state in it. The very creation and existence of ESC has changed the political environment in Bulgaria as well as the socio-economic and industrial relations, because the Council is a platform for agreement between employers, trade unions and NGOs with different interests.

The establishment of such a democratic civil society institution was one of the commitments of our country in the process of accession to the European Union, which it has successfully implemented.

With its full membership of the EU on 1 January 2007, ESC was faced with new challenges and responsibilities. Today, it is among the national councils of the member states of the Community, which receives high appreciation, recognition and respect from the European institutions for its work in promoting and developing new forms of civil dialogue in Bulgaria.

There are no state representatives on ESC (unlike tripartite councils, which include government representatives), making it an advisory body independent of the executive and legislature.

The Economic and Social Council became a fact in Bulgaria thanks to the political and public consensus on the place, role and importance of such an institution as an independent “citizens’ parliament”. It has developed on the basis of the experience, traditions and achievements in the field of social dialogue, which have been conducted in the country since the beginning of the democratic changes. The understanding, conviction and support of the social partners in the country for civil dialogue as the next stage and a broader form of social dialogue have been extremely important for its establishment and successful development.

In the European Union, a distinction is made between “social dialogue” and “civil dialogue” in terms of participants, procedures, subject of discussion, objectives. Today, this distinction, as well as the legislative and institutional development of social and civil dialogue, is a fact in our country.