In 2018, more than 40 million rubles will be allocated from the budget of the Omsk region to support non-governmental social service providers.

The possibilities of implementing projects of social entrepreneurs and leaders of non-profit organizations were discussed at the Omsk CISS negotiating platform.

The issues of developing the market of non-governmental services and obtaining state support for the implementation of socially significant projects in 2018 were discussed at the negotiation platform organized by the Center for Innovation in the Social Sphere (CISS) with the participation of government officials and the public. To date, 80 social service providers have been included in the Omsk Region register, including 16 non–governmental, 6 individual entrepreneurs, and 8 socially oriented non–profit organizations (SONKO).

Irina Varnavskaya, Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Development of the Omsk Region, said that in 2018 it is planned to allocate more than 40 million rubles from the regional budget for the implementation of projects of social entrepreneurs and SONKO providing services to the population. "The priority is social rehabilitation services, assistance to single elderly and disabled people, families with children. In addition, subsidies are provided to support resource centers, train SONKO members, and hold public events," the Deputy minister stressed.

The CISS, established 7 years ago with the support of the Ministry of Economy of the Omsk region, trains social entrepreneurs who are interested in improving the quality of life of their fellow countrymen. This year, with the involvement of funds from the Presidential Grants Fund, a new program was launched to train managers of non-profit organizations focused on providing their own social services. The first edition of the "School of Social Innovation" took place the day before.

"36 people have been trained. They are preparing to implement more than 30 projects, and plan to launch about 40 social services in the fields of culture, additional education, tourism, leisure activities, health protection, and support for citizens in difficult situations. In addition, 11 graduates of the school create 11 new public non-profit organizations. Today, social entrepreneurs are introducing their projects to government representatives, and they are ready to join the work to meet the needs of the social services market," said Irina Serbina, head of the Omsk CISS.

The participants of the negotiation platform discussed the possibilities of introducing new services aimed at the social rehabilitation of children with mental disabilities (ANO "With love for People"), rehabilitation and additional employment of children and schoolchildren with disabilities (Sneil LLC, Robotics Without Borders project and Tenth Element LLC, Aquaclub project "My baby"). In addition, a project was considered to transform the Halo creative center from a social business into a public organization for the employment of people with disabilities, as well as new services for people in difficult situations.

The work of the second school for training leaders of public formations has begun, and in total in 2018 there will be 4 sets of an acceleration program aimed at promoting and supporting social innovations. The negotiators reported on the difficulties that arise in the implementation of projects related to the provision of social services, and defined the conditions for receiving state support. According to the organizers, negotiation platforms are an effective tool for solving socially significant problems, allowing them to find additional opportunities and resources for the implementation of start–ups and the development of social entrepreneurship.