National contact points for responsible business conduct are agencies set up by governments with specific objectives, which are:

• to promote the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and related guidelines for due diligence;
• support businesses and their stakeholders to take appropriate measures to encourage compliance with the Guidelines;
• to handle cases (called “specific cases”) as an out-of-court complaint mechanism;
• to pass voluntary peer reviews that identify their strengths and areas for improvement.

To be implemented and promoted most effectively, the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises are to be supported by a unique mechanism of the National Contact Point (NCP), which functions as an agency established by the government that adopted the Guidelines. The effectiveness of the NCP is accomplished through a set of actions, which include undertaking promotional activities, processing inquiries, and contributing to resolving problems that may arise from non-compliance with guidelines in specific cases.

National contact points for responsible business conduct are agencies set up by governments with specific objectives, which are:

• to promote the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and related guidelines for due diligence;
• support businesses and their stakeholders to take appropriate measures to encourage compliance with the Guidelines;
• to handle cases (called “specific cases”) as an out-of-court complaint mechanism;
• to pass voluntary peer reviews that identify their strengths and areas for improvement.

• Encourages voluntary compliance with the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises for Responsible Business Conduct;
• Addressing cases of non-observance of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises for Responsible Business Conduct;
• NCP considers the submitted inquiries by the Guidelines by accepting for consideration or refusing the submitted cases by the interested parties within a reasonable time;
• In case of acceptance for consideration of the submitted case for non-observance or received an inquiry, NCP sends the same to the Working Group (WG) for further review and subsequent resolution;
• NCP assists in the voluntary resolution of cases, concerning the rights of stakeholders under the implementation of the Guidelines, through mediation and concerning the considerations of the WG;
• Encourages dialogue and finding mutually acceptable solutions for the affected parties concerned while respecting the standards of impartiality, predictability, fairness, and compatibility of the Guidelines and these rules;
• Responds to inquiries from other NCPs, stakeholders, and national governments on the correct application of the Guidelines and, at its discretion, sends questions for consideration by the WG;
• Keeps in touch and consults with other NCPs of OECD member and non-member countries, keeping in parallel the received information, practice, and experience public via the websites of the line ministry and BSMEPA and on this NCP website. The function is managed/performed by the head of NCP and assisted by the Secretariat of the NCP accordingly.
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The National Contact Point (NCP) of Bulgaria was established by Decision No. 682/17.09.2021, as a permanent mechanism for implementing the Guidelines for Responsible Business Conduct of Multinational Enterprises in Bulgaria. Each country has the flexibility to structure its NCP as long as it functions in accordance with the basic criteria established by the OECD.

The structure of NCP – Bulgaria includes the following bodies:

1. Head of NCP – Bulgaria

• With Decision No. 682/17.09.2021, according to point 1, the executive director of the Bulgarian SMEs Promotion Agency who is under the Minister of Innovation and Growth has been designated as the head of the NCP – Bulgaria.

2. NCP Secretariat

• Provides administrative, technical and expert support for the NCP and coordination with the WG, organizes the preparation and holding of the WG meetings, ensures the timely distribution of the agenda and materials for the meetings, conducts correspondence related to the work of the WG which is addressed to the chairman of WG and other activities.

3. Working Group (WG)

• Each organization participating in the WG appoints a titular member and his deputy;
• If necessary, ad-hoc and external experts from other departments, the nationally representative organizations of employers and employees, non-governmental organizations and the academic sector could be brought into the WG;
• The Chairman of the WG is the head of the NCP, which by right this is the executive director of the BSMEPA. In the absence of the Chairman of the WG, his functions are performed by a person expressly authorized by him, a member of the WG or a member of the NCP Secretariat designated by him;

• WG members:
• Ministry of Innovation and Growth;
• Ministry of Economy and Industry;
• Ministry of Labor and Social Policy;
• Ministry of Environment and Water;
• National Revenue Agency;
• Bulgarian Industrial Capital Association;
• Bulgarian Industrial Association;
• Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry;
• Confederation of Employers and Industrialists in Bulgaria;
• Union for Private Economic Enterprise;
• Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria;
• Confederation of Labor “Support”;
• Center for the Study of Democracy;
• Bulgarian Association of Specialists in Corporate Social Responsibility (BASCSR);
• Bulgarian Network of the UN Global Compact.

4. National Economic Council (NEC)

• • The National Economic Council, in its capacity as a consultative body to the Council of Ministers, is defined as the supervisory body of the Bulgarian NCP and has the functions of monitoring the activity of the NCP.
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