Tuesday, 20 October 2026 | Sofia, Bulgaria

A face-to-face conference for procurement and supply chain professionals, co-organised by the Bulgarian Association of Supply Chain and the World Bank Group.

Overview

The Bulgarian Association of Supply Chain and the World Bank Group will hold a one-day conference in Sofia on 20 October 2026 under the title Resilience Redefined: Supply Chain in an Unpredictable World.

The programme examines how macroeconomic conditions, geopolitical developments and sustainability requirements are changing the way supply chains are designed and managed, and what these changes mean in practice for organisations operating in Bulgaria. It combines analysis from World Bank Group economists and country specialists with the experience of procurement and supply chain leaders from international and Bulgarian companies.

The conference is preceded by an optional training session with limited capacity and closes with a networking reception.

Key information

Date	Tuesday, 20 October 2026
Time	10:00 – 18:00 (optional training from 08:30)
Venue	World Bank Office, Advance Business Center, Mladost 4, Sofia
Format	In person
Languages	English and Bulgarian (per session)
Translation	Into English
Audience	Procurement, supply chain, sourcing and operations professionals
Access	Active members of BASC
Participation fee	Free of charge
Registration	https://www.scm.bg/resilience-redefined

Agenda

Time	Session
08:30 – 09:00	Registration for the training session
09:00 – 10:00	Optional training (40 seats): When Your Two Suppliers Turn Out to Be One — Supplier Strategy in a BANI World Joao Correia Botelho, President, Portuguese Procurement Association (EN)
10:00 – 10:30	Registration for the conference
10:30 – 10:45	Welcome and Opening Remarks Preslava Filipova, Bulgarian Association of Supply Chain, and Mariya Abroskina, Procurement Center of Excellence, World Bank Group
10:45 – 11:40	From Global Shocks to Local Realities: The Macroeconomic Forces Reshaping Bulgarian Supply Chains Desislava Nikolova, Senior Economist, World Bank Group (EN)
11:40 – 12:10	Geopolitical Dynamics and Bulgaria’s Business Environment: What Investors and Supply Chain Leaders Need to Know Martin Gikov, Country Officer, World Bank Group (EN)
12:10 – 12:30	Sustainability: If Carbon Had a Price, What Would You Stop Buying? Joao Correia Botelho, President, Portuguese Procurement Association (EN)
12:30 – 13:30	Lunch
13:30 – 14:30	What Do Global Risks Mean for Procurement? Turning Economic Uncertainty into Competitive Advantage Panel discussion and Q&A: Eliza Bakardzhieva, Lufthansa; Lubomira Smirnova; Martin Gikov, World Bank Group (BG)
14:30 – 14:50	Supply Chain Financing Bozhidar Hristov, UniCredit Bulbank (BG)
14:50 – 15:20	Coffee break
15:20 – 15:50	Leading in a VUCA World: The Human Side of Uncertainty What supply chain leaders can learn about adaptability, culture and decision-making under uncertainty — Ivanina Parvanova, Executive Coaching (BG)
15:50 – 16:20	How to Speak Panel discussion: Mariya Abroskina and Dessie Stoyanova (BG)
16:20 – 16:30	Closing Remarks Mariya Abroskina, Manager, Corporate Procurement Center of Excellence, World Bank Group
16:30 – 18:00	Networking reception

The organizers reserve the right to make changes to the program.

Registration

Places at the conference are limited to 100 and allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Only registrations from current members of Bulgarian Association of Supply Chain will be accepted*.

The optional morning training session is limited to 40 participants and must be selected during registration.

Register here: www.scm.bg/resilience-redefined

For questions regarding registration or participation, contact info@scm.bg.

About the organisers

The Bulgarian Association of Supply Chain is the professional association of procurement and supply chain specialists in Bulgaria. It supports the development of the profession through training, stewarding professional standards, conducting research and community events, and is a member of the International Federation of Purchasing and Supply Management (IFPSM).

The World Bank Group is one of the largest sources of knowledge and resources for developing countries. Its Corporate Procurement Center of Excellence works on procurement practice, capability and standards across the institution and with partners internationally.

* Should you wish to apply for membership in BASC, visit: https://scm.bg/%d1%87%d0%bb%d0%b5%d0%bd%d1%81%d1%82%d0%b2%d0%be-new/