The Euro without Myths: Training for the Roma community in the village of Kaspichan

On February 9, training was held at the Hristo Botev Unified School in the village of Kaspichan, Shumen district, under the project “The Euro Without Myths: Voices from the Community”, which is aimed at increasing awareness and trust in the process of introducing the euro in Bulgaria among the Roma community and other vulnerable groups.

Silvia Stancheva, regional pedagogical coordinator at the Amalipe Center, spoke with the active girls from the village community. During the presentation, the participants were informed about the process of introducing the euro in Bulgaria. The girls participating in the meeting also learned how currency conversion works, how to recognize original banknotes from counterfeits, refuted the most common myths and were informed about how to protect themselves as consumers.

In the discussion that followed

, it turned out that a month after we started using the European currency, we are starting to get used to it. It was shared that the feeling is that the prices of some goods have increased and that the girls are careful about how much they pay and how much change they get back, because they have witnessed mistakes. Real life stories were told and the conclusions learned from them were shared. Regarding our Bulgarian identity, related to the leva, it was shared that the euro does not change our sense of belonging to the homeland. It was said that the introduction of the euro does not change our Bulgarian identity, because it is built on our language, culture, history and traditions, and not on the currency. The Bulgarian lev is a symbol, but Bulgarianness is in the people, customs and values ​​that we carry and pass on. And that in such moments we should not separate, but rather unity and mutual assistance are important.

The goal of the meeting is to increase awareness and trust regarding the euro introduction process in Roma communities, as well as to counteract disinformation, speculation and conspiratorial suggestions.

Girls and women in the Roma community will play a leading role in this. They do so because they are often the drivers of social initiatives and feel a responsibility to protect the values ​​and future of their families and communities.

The training was conducted within the framework of the project “The Euro without Myths: Voices from the Community”, funded by the Solidarity Fund Program.