“An ambassador's work is not that easy. I imagined it would be very tiring and monotonous but it is actually very interesting and enjoyable”. Such are the impressions of Evelina Dimitrova from the village of Galiche who closely monitors the work of the Ambassador of the Swiss Confederation to Bulgaria HE Muriel Berset Kohen. The seventeen-year-old Bulgarian girl took the role of the Swiss diplomat after she successfully qualified for the Ambassador for a Day competition, organized by Emma Hopkins, the British Ambassador to Bulgaria. The aim of the initiative is to familiarize the winners (only girls between 15 and 19 years of age) with international diplomacy in action, as well as to encourage them to engage in this field and to contribute with their views to the development of their country internationally. On the eve of 8 March, the International Women’s Day, the young “ambassadors”, together with the heads of the diplomatic missions, will take part in a high-level roundtable discussion on gender equality.

“The place of women should be the same as it is for men," Evelina says. “I think we should not divide people on the basis of ethnicity, gender, age, race, etc. We are all human beings and we all have the same opportunities. I think it would be good for men and women to work in a team. We know that men and women think differently, so it is good for them to reach mutual consent. This is what true harmony and equality means.”

Evelina won the high assessment of the jury with an essay describing her views on early child development, Roma integration and women's equality. When she was selected as the winner among the numerous participants, she could not believe this was really happening to her.

“I felt very excited”, she says. “I knew about the existence of this campaign since last year. Then I did not apply, because I did not have the courage, but now I decided to act boldly and try. I thought it would be very difficult to get approved and now I am an ambassador. I hope the things I deal with are understood. We will certainly continue our cooperation with the Swiss embassy and the people I have met. There are ideas I can borrow from the embassy and implement them in my village, in my school. Together with my friends, we created an ecological and educational association”.

Together with the Ambassador of the Swiss Confederation, Evelina visited the Roma neighborhood in Montana, Kosharnik, where under the ZOV project of the Bulgarian-Swiss cooperation programme an entirely new kindergarten was built. In the words of Swiss Ambassador Berset Kohen, though brief, the cooperation with Evelina within the Ambassador for a Day initiative has been enriching to her and has helped her understand this country better:

"I am very glad to participate in this initiative and to have Evelina Dimitrova as our Swiss ambassador. I have always believed it is very good to meet young people. We are usually in contact with many representatives of political, scientific and business circles, artists and not so much with young people. I am convinced that when you want to understand one country you have to talk to the young people. When you act as ambassador, as in my case, you can serve as an example, an inspiration, and I do it willingly. For me, empowering a woman is very important, and in this respect I can say that Bulgaria is ahead of Switzerland. If we look at the participation of women in the country’s political and economic life, in science and information technologies,in the hi-tech sector,Bulgaria ranks first in Europe. That's why I am convinced that a person like Evelina, wishing to help and contribute to the development of her country, sends a very important message to society. It is vital to show that, despite some negative ideas, there are young people in her community who want to learn and participate in the development of their country,” said Swiss ambassador to Bulgaria HE Berset Kohen.

English Rossitsa Petcova