About SE

During our project implementation we strive towards keeping the standards of quality and efficiency, having in mind the significance of creating synergies and collaboration with various local and national stakeholders. From the beginning of the project we have focused on achieving the expected project results in effective and quality manner. In the light of transparency we are offering you the opportunity to take a look into our current project achievements.

As the social entrepreneurship economy model has proven to be successful in terms of job integration in Europe,  the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy has decided to create a legal and financial eco-system for the social entrepreneurship development in the country, to be established through the EU-funded project “Fostering Social Entrepreneurship” (FSE) implemented by EPTISA. The project has been successfully operating since 2016 and will be completed in November 2017. The FSE project aims at:                                                                                             

  • improving inclusiveness of the labour market by creating new job opportunities through stimulation of social economic initiatives
  • helping to develop social entrepreneurship in the country by building and implementing the right ecosystem for social entrepreneurship and fostering already established social businesses by providing corporate-support service

Relevant project partners work closely with our Project Team and with their efforts and expertise contribute to the successful project implementation – on a regular basis do we consult the representatives of various Ministries and institutions such as the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy (Labour Department, Social Protection Department, Implementation of Roma Strategy Department, and IPA Department), the  Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Finance, the Cabinet of the Deputy Prime Minister of Economic Affairs, the National Registry, Civil Society Organizations, local self-government units, the Employment Service Agency, the Agency for Promotion of Entrepreneurship, various Universities,  Youth organizations, International institutions and Embassies.

One year of intense project implementation has resulted in a fruitful establishment of responsible institutional structures that are shaping the new Law on Social Entrepreneurship in the country. We are at the same time working on increasing the legal and organizational capacities of social enterprises who are a part of our SEs empowerment programme.

With passion of entrepreneurs we try to motivate and inspire young people to become creative and design future social enterprises of their own or to follow our internship & scholarship programme where they are matched with experienced mentors from our respected social enterprises.

By promoting solidarity, mutuality, entrepreneurship and dialogue on social economy values and introducing good practices from other European countries, we are setting up solid regional standards for establishment and monitoring of social entrepreneurship in the region.

With the support of our project partners, we shall further continue inspiring social change and in the process will share our latest project developments with you. Your interest and support are truly appreciated.

Barbara Sadowska
EPTISA Team Leader
“Fostering Social Entrepreneurship” Project

Experience in SE

Stories of SE in other countries – Bosnian Handicrafts
A Brief History

In the aftermath of the war in Bosnia, 1992-1995, many humanitarian organizations came into the country to help in the recovery of its up-rooted and exhausted people. One of the more successful of these was the Norwegian Peoples’s Aid (NPA). They built a refugee center near Tuzla, a town north of Sarajevo, not far from Srebrenica and the Serb area, from which so many Muslims fled.  Since the men were off with the army, a large proportion of the refugees were women and children, who had sought shelter, first with friends and relatives, and then often, on their own, in the forest.

NPA hired a young Bosnian woman, Lejla Radoncic, as Coordinator of the Center, one of her talents being a good command of English, which was a great asset since few of the foreigners spoke the local language. As she worked with the women, it became clear that they were deeply traumatized: they had lost their men, in a society largely driven by men; they had lost their homes, in which many had lived their whole lives; and they had lost their land, in a rural, agricultural society. But they could knit, and Lejla had an idea: she solicited a donation of yarn and needles, and got a contract from a Swedish church for 1,500 sweaters. In six weeks, working with a wide range of women, the contract was fulfilled – and the Norwegian People’s Aid Handicraft Project (NPA-HCP) was born.

The Project came into existence as work therapy. As the women began to do something constructive, their feeling of hopelessness began to lift. And of course the warm sweaters were much needed. Lejla began to bring women from other refugee centers into the NPA-HCP, collecting hundreds of women as producers.  In 1997, the NPA assisted her in opening a small shop in Sarajevo, and it soon earned the reputation of being the most interesting designs and highest quality in town.

In January of 1998, Peggy Barry, the wife of an American diplomat posted in Sarajevo, visited the shop, and was impressed with what she saw. She was looking for a project to get involved in – and now she had found it. She met Lejla, realized that this was the sort of grassroots project which was providing work and income for the people who needed it most, and immediately started trying to sell the Bosnian products in the US.

In 1999, it became clear that it was time to separate from the NPA, though the Norwegians continued to provide support in many ways.  The company became a non-profit organization registered in Bosnia, which wholly owned the commercial arm of the enterprise – both were called Bosnian Handicrafts. By 2000, Peggy Barry had started a US registered 501(c)3 corporation, Bosnian Handicrafts, Inc., to support the efforts of their sister organization in Bosnia. This is the structure in effect today.

BHcrafts’  largest contracts have been with the Sundance Catalog, which once ordered $156,000 worth of Christmas stockings and accessories, and the National Geographic catalog, which orders several items.  At the time of the largest order, more than 700 women were producing for BHcrafts. Today there are orders from France, the UK, and Japan, and a greatly expanded Bosnian market.  The number fluctuates according to contracts on hand, but all of those women have been trained to knit, crochet or weave for the export market, and are available if needed.  The women all work at home.  Each month they are given the raw materials and patterns which they say they can do in a month, and they are paid at the end of the month for the items which they complete.

In looking at the rather depressing aspect of country-wide economic development in Bosnia, Bosnian Handicrafts stands out as a real success. Lejla Radoncic has been named as the only Social Entrepreneur in Bosnia by the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. BHcrafts was started by Bosnians; uses Bosnian materials and processors whenever possible; and employs those within the society who are most in need of assistance. As a result of the BH crafts SE, there are many children attending high school because their mothers have the money to put them on the bus to get there.

Suggestions from BHcrafts on communication and marketing for others starting or running a social enterprise

  • The main part of the marketing strategy is communicating the message on the social background of the product, as the added value to uniqueness and good quality product. The very first thing that BHcrafts made was to write the name of the woman who made the product, which was admired very much by all our buyers.
  • The next thing was creating the slogan “Shopping with purpose” in order to separate our products from similar commercial ones.
  • Creation of the web site, and other social media, keeping them accurate and updated was the final step in our strategy.

Ideas from BHcrafts on how to improve online sales

  • To increase online sales we use references and feedback from previous customers, positioning BHcrafts as licensed Fair trade producer, listing all certificates, explaining that each and every product is high quality, hand-made from high quality natural yarns, followed by care instruction label, name of the producer and country of origin.
  • BHcrafts uses every chance to communicate the message how the income from the sales of products will be spent and what is the importance of the steady income for our beneficiaries.

To learn more about the accomplishments of BHcrafts click here.