EXAMPLES OF JOINT INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AND INITIATIVES ON NATIONAL EXPERIENCES OF ROMA SELF-RELIABILITY AND RESPONSIBILITY TO PARTICIPATE IN SOCIETY AS ANY OTHER CITIZEN (EDUCATION, LABOUR MARKET, SPORTS ETC.)

THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE

                European Social Charter

The European Social Charter Article 1 to 19, and in particular article 12 which constrains member States to establish a system of social security and Article 14, which states that « everyone has the right to benefit from social welfare services ». Article 16 establishes that « the family as a fundamental unit of society has the right to appropriate social, legal and economic protection to ensure its full development ». Article 17 : « Mothers and children, irrespective of marital status and family relations, have the right to appropriate social and economic protection »;

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe

Resolution 2257(2019) of the Parliamentary Assembly on Discrimination in access to employment;

Discrimination in access to employment […] for some people these problems are compounded by discrimination based on grounds such as their sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national, ethnic or social origin, belonging to a national or ethnic minority, colour, language, family name, religion, political opinions, trade union activities, pregnancy, disability, state of health or physical appearance or any other real or supposed situation.

Resolution 2014 (2014) of the Parliamentary Assembly on raising the status of vocational education and training;

Raising the status of vocational education and training […]

• provide financial incentives, such as grants and scholarships for VET students and apprentices and for employers who act as trainers in VET programmes;

• encourage, in particular, the acquisition of entrepreneurial competences in addition to the specific professional competences in each profession;

Congress of Local and Regional Authorities

Resolution 442(2019) of the Congress on Social rights of young people: the role of local and regional authorities;

Youth Department

The Council of Europe Youth Department elaborates guidelines, programmes and legal instruments for the development of coherent and effective youth policies, as well as concrete tools such as the “Self-assessment for youth policy”, for the use of member States. Following the Committee of Ministers’ Recommendation CM/Rec(2015)3 on the access of young people from disadvantaged neighbourhoods to social rights, regular surveys will be carried out to look at the measures taken by member States, but also the projects and initiatives implemented by youth organisations and local and regional authorities.

The Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) approved on 15 June 2018:

A €2 million loan to the Roma Education Fund (REF) to provide bridge-financing for education programmes being implemented in Romania, aimed at improving Roma access to quality education and reducing or preventing early school dropout of Roma students in Romania. It is expected that around 4,000 persons will directly benefit from the programme. The loan will be used by the REF to bridge finance three European Social Fund (ESF) funded programmes (50% of the CEB loan) and one EEA/Norway Grants programme (50% of the CEB loan). The programme loan will contribute to improved Roma access to quality education, a drop in early school leaving, updated and adapted school teaching methods and awareness rising among pupils’ parents. Final beneficiaries will be early education children, primary and secondary education pupils, parents and teachers.

A €7 million loan to Permicro SPA, the leading microcredit provider in Italy, to support its lending activity. The CEB loan will contribute to promoting financial inclusion through boosting job creation and will improve access to financing for vulnerable groups, particularly migrants and refugees who have limited or no access to formal banking services.

THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE AND THE EU

ROMACT

The desire to support and coordinate actions to assist the Roma community prompted the European Commission and the Council of Europe to launch the ROMACT Programme in 2013.  This joint initiative seeks to assist mayors and municipal authorities to work together with local Roma communities to develop policies and public services that are inclusive of all, including Roma. It operates in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Romania and the Slovak Republic.

ROMACT aims to improve the responsiveness and accountability of local authorities, particularly elected and senior civil servants, towards marginalised Roma communities. It focuses on generating long-term sustained political commitment which are designed to compel member states to sustainable measures for Roma inclusion.

The ROMACT programme aims to build the capacity of local authorities to develop and implement policies and public services that are inclusive of all, including Roma. Policy change and capacity building are long term processes which require a variety of inter-connected methods and interventions. Considering the Common Basic Principles on Roma Inclusion, ROMACT is guided by the need to ensure:

 

·         The promotion of a human rights approach, including equality and anti- discrimination principles;

·         Explicit but not exclusive targeting;

·         An integrated approach, to avoid fragmentation;

·         Tackling local needs through local solutions with local people;

·         Mainstreaming the specific needs of disadvantaged Roma in all public policies;

·         Good governance and transparent decision-making processes, citizens’ participation and accountability;

·         Evidence-based approach and transfer of good practices;

·         Promotion of gender equality and mainstreaming gender issues;

·         Better use of EU funds;

·         Performance evaluation

The ROMACT methodology consists of four steps

First step:  raising awareness and building the commitment of local authorities to Roma inclusion.

The ROMACT team starts by raising awareness among local authorities.  We remind them that the integration of the Roma population represents opportunities, particularly economic ones.

Local authorities (Mayors and local officials) participate in national workshops focusing on the key principles of good governance, potential contributions that Roma inclusion offers to local development as well as the need for policy measures that consider the needs of all.

Ultimately the process leads to a letter of agreement signed by the Mayor.  This letter agrees to allocate municipality resources to the ROMACT process.  Once local authorities are committed to meeting the need for Roma to be included as full-fledged citizens in their municipalities, the ROMACT team helps them cooperate with the local Roma community, represented by the Roma Community Action Group (CAG).

The CAG is made up of local Roma citizens who are committed to dealing with the challenges facing their community and are willing to enter into dialogue with local authorities. It becomes the representative voice of the Roma community for the local authority.  In each municipality, the ROMACT team facilitates regular contact and meetings between local authorities and the Roma Community Action group.

Second Step:  agreeing on what needs to be done to improve the living conditions of the Roma community.

The ROMACT team helps local authorities identify the root-causes of the marginalization of the area’s Roma community and, also, what needs to be done to meet these identified challenges.  This process, which is carried out in partnership with the Community Action Group, contributes to main-streaming Roma issues within the Local Development Action Plan of the municipality.

Third Step:  translating the Local Development Action Plan into concrete measures and projects.

The ROMACT team assists local authorities to translate their Local Development Action Plan into concrete measures and projects which are inclusive of all, including Roma.  The ROMACT team also provides expertise and working tools in policy and project design.  In addition to our training sessions and capacity building services, we offer coaching and mentoring support, and assistance to local authorities to identify available resources and relevant staff skills.

Fourth Step:  funding, implementing and monitoring measures and projects for making the Joint Development Action Plan operational.

The ROMACT team assists local authorities to identify available resources at local level and, where appropriate, to apply for and obtain national and EU co-funding.  Once measures and projects secure funding and are launched, the ROMACT team can provide management expertise to local authorities.  ROMACT can also assist in project monitoring and measuring project impacts.

ROMACT training sessions and capacity building services are modular, training and support are offered to meet specific needs of stakeholders in the any given locality.

Local authorities and the CAG are an integral part of the ROMACT process, this allows the best possible assistance for the assessment of needs, the development and implementation of policy and plans as well as the mainstreaming Roma needs within local authorities.

ROMED1 and ROMED2

The general aim of ROMED1 is to improve the quality and effectiveness of the work of school, health, employment and community mediators, with a view to supporting better communication and co-operation between Roma and public institutions (school, health-care providers, employment offices, local authorities etc.)

Mediation is one of the measures used across Europe to tackle the inequalities Roma face in terms of access to employment, healthcare services and quality education. It consists of employing persons with a Roma background, from local Roma communities, or with a good knowledge of Roma issues, to act as mediators between the Roma and the public institutions.

From 2011 to 2016 ROMED1 trained 1,479 mediators from 500 municipalities in 22 countries. Approximately 90% of the trained mediators are Roma, and more than 50% are women. Over 700 representatives of local institutions took part in training sessions which increased their understanding of the role of mediators. Representatives of national institutions with relevant responsibilities in Roma inclusion were also present at some training sessions.

The ROMED1 training programme was considered by local stakeholders to be highly relevant to the needs of local Roma inclusion processes. In particular, mediators valued it for its human rights based approach and empowerment orientation, and for its focus on the clarity of the role of mediators and the practical aspects of their work.

ROMED2 ‘Democratic Governance and Roma Community Participation through Mediation’ emerged from the learnings of ROMED1. It invested in local processes aimed at enhancing the participation of Roma in local decision making. It stimulated the self-organisation of Roma communities into Community Action Groups (CAGs). Through a structured process of dialogue and cooperation with local authorities, the CAGs identified the priorities of the community and suggested initiatives for addressing them.

It has been implemented from April 2013 to February 2017 and active in 54 municipalities in 11 countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Romania, the Slovak Republic, the "former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (FYRoM), and Ukraine.

One of the recommendations which emanated from the initiative in Ukraine included considering opening a Council of Europe special Roma project office in Kyiv to monitor and assist national authorities to implement the Roma inclusion programme and its national strategy and this has now been done. The ROMED2 Programme could be reactivated and further pursued as a follow-up to this thematic visit.

ROMACTED

ROMACTED results from the experience of the ROMED and ROMACT programmes and see how these methodologies can be adapted to fit into the policy cycle and the dynamics and reality of each municipality, and thus bringing an additional input to existing policies and practices for an effective and more inclusive functioning.

One of the leading guidelines in the methodology of the programme is that participation in local governance can only be effective if it is context-appropriate. Thus, a preliminary mapping, assessment, baseline survey and research are done in each selected municipality so as to facilitate the adaptation of the programme and its support and monitoring of the process.

The aims of the programme are to strengthen political will and support local development through capacity-building of local authorities and effective participation of Roma citizens in local plans and projects; empower the Roma citizens- on the individual level (assisting people to practice their basic rights and to expand their capacity and skills), as well as on the community level (assisting people to get organised to voice their interests around community problem-solving); improve and expand the institutions' commitment, capacities, knowledge and skills in working for Roma inclusion, putting into practice the concepts of good governance.

The specificity of the actions would be to assist the local authorities to integrate Roma specific dimension/measures into the mainstream local policies, budgets and public service delivery on their agenda, while enhancing the participation of the Roma citizens in the design, implementation and monitoring of those policies and projects. As a result of the implementation of the programme, it is expected that the participating municipalities remain with consolidated features to continue serving the needs of the Roma population such as sustainable local action plans and one-stop-shops that facilitate the access of Roma to the public services.

The target groups of the project are local public administrations (the elected representatives and relevant officials) and the Roma communities from the selected municipalities.

                IN-SCHOOL

The starting point of the project “Inclusive schools: making a difference for Roma children” is based on the assumption that it is not enough to draw up policies of change. Change needs to be reflected at school level and in the environment of the children and there is often a gap between the statements and requirements in policy documents and the reality in which these need to be implemented. Practice has proven that for schools to overcome the rift of exclusive teaching and learning approaches, they have to re-examine what they teach, how they teach and how they assess learners’ performances. A real link with the non-formal education and the support for families and communities is necessary to create a shift in education - for the benefit of all learners. The project is carried out in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Slovak Republic and United Kingdom.

OSCE – ODIHR

“Best Practices for Roma Integration” (BPRI) Small Grants Programme

The main objective of the small grants programme was to improve the quality of life and access to rights of the Roma communities in the Western Balkans. The small grants programme aimed to support small-scale projects at the municipal level that were put forward by local self-governments in co-operation with Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian NGOs. Each municipality or commune in the region was eligible to receive grants of 5,000 euros per project, with total project funding of 100,000 euros available region-wide.

Some recommendations made following the Programme were as follows:

•             Local governments that have adopted Action Plans for Roma Inclusion should be supported in the implementation of these documents, as municipal funding is often insufficient;

•             Application forms for local projects should be relatively simple, and information sessions should be held for potential applicants;

•             At least 18 months should be allocated for the implementation of the small grant programme, as elections often delay the process;

•             Greater funding should be provided for the implementation of similar small grant schemes in the future.

European Union

Through the Social Investment Package, the Commission provides guidance to Member States to modernise their welfare systems towards social investment throughout life

The social investment package gives guidance to Member States on more efficient and effective social policies in response to the significant challenges they currently face. These include high levels of financial distress, increasing poverty and social exclusion, as well as record unemployment, especially among young people.

The social investment package is an integrated policy framework which takes account of the social, economic and budgetary divergences between Member States. One of its focus is Upgrading active inclusion strategies in the Member States. Affordable quality childcare and education, prevention of early school leaving, training and job-search assistance, housing support and accessible health care are all policy areas with a strong social investment dimension.

Though the Employment and Social Innovation (EaSI) programme, the EU provides financing support to promote a high level of quality and sustainable employment, guaranteeing adequate and decent social protection, combating social exclusion and poverty and improving working conditions.

The Europe 2020 flagship initiatives entitled "European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion" and "Innovation Union" identify social innovation as a powerful tool for addressing the social challenges arising from population ageing, poverty, unemployment, new work patterns and life styles, and the expectations of citizens regarding social justice, education and health care. The Programme should support action to increase social innovation, in response to social needs that are not met or that are met insufficiently, in respect of combating poverty and social exclusion, promoting a high level of quality and sustainable employment, guaranteeing adequate and poverty-preventing social protection, improving working conditions and improving access to training for vulnerable people.