Ana Rozanova – Page 61

MESSAGES COMING FROM THE PUBLIC EVENT ‘COUNTERING SHRINKING SPACE FOR ROMA CIVIL SOCIETY’

MESSAGES COMING FROM THE PUBLIC EVENT
‘COUNTERING SHRINKING SPACE FOR ROMA CIVIL SOCIETY’

On 29 November 2016, ERGO network organised a public event to discuss
the ‘Shrinking space of Roma civil society’ which was co-hosted by MEPs
Terry Reintke (Greens/EFA) and Tomáš Zdechovský (EPP). Over 80 people
participated in the meeting. One of the conclusions is that there is a squeeze on available funding for work that is not strictly oriented to the provision of social services: advocacy, watchdog work, civil monitoring, community empowerment and activism. That shrinking space of civil society is a trend in Europe, but hits hard on Roma organisations, as they are scarcely equipped and often struggling for survival

You can download the recommendations here

High-Level Event on Roma Youth Empowerment in Bratislava

High-Level Event on Roma Youth Empowerment in Bratislava

The event was organized by the European Commission DG Justice and the Slovak Presidency of the Council of the European Union from 9-11 October 2016 in Bratislava.

The aim of the event was to bring together young Roma and relevant stakeholders to work together on how they can be a driving force for the Roma integration process. The event also included the first year of the European Roma Spirit Award 2016, which awards exceptional individuals, organizations, and projects who actively improve the situation of Roma in Europe every day.

The agenda of the event was very intense with panel discussions and workshops with high-level representatives such as Commissioner Jourova and representatives of the Ministries from Slovakia, Czech Republic, Romania, and Hungary.

Moreover, representatives of the Council of Europe, Members of the European Parliament and international and national stakeholders who work on Roma integration were present at the meeting.

ERGO Network took part in a workshop on access to social rights with a focus on education and employment. The outcome of the workshops was a common agreement that antigypsyism is one of the main reason why the integration process of Roma and Roma youth is still a major issue after so many measures were taken. The outcomes of the workshops were presented by young Roma rapporteurs and discussed in the panels.

In the panel discussion “Roma Youth as the Leaders of the Roma Integration Process” with the ministries and high level representatives, Valeriu Nicolae, Special Representative of the Secretary General for Roma Issues from the Council of Europe, said “Racism goes beyond the logic and destroys lives; we must take action and stop antigypsyism”.

Roma youth identified several issues that have been brought to the event mostly in the area of education and employment. The issues raised by the young people and international and national stakeholders will be reflected in the Council Conclusions on Roma that will be adopted in the middle of December 2016

Czech NGOs meet with Czech Ministry of Education

Czech NGOs meet with Czech Ministry of Education

Czech Deputy Education Minister Václav Pícl met with representatives of a National Working Group that consists of 11 Romani non-profit organizations from all over the Czech Republic on 3 October in his office at the ministry. “The aim of the meeting is to establish a constructive collaboration between established Romani nonprofit organizations and the Education Ministry. The coalition works with as many as 8 000 Romani people around the country and can be a bridge between the Romani community and the state administration,” said Jelena Silajdži, director of ERGO member Slovo 21.

During the hour-long discussion the specific aims and the fulfilment of the Czech Government’s Romani Integration Strategy were touched upon, as was the insufficient representation of Romani people in advisory positions within the executive branch, the legislature and the state administration, as well as the planned changes to pre-school education next year and scholarship programs for Romani students. The ministry representative was invited to visit the IQ Roma Service organization in Brno to see examples of good practice in the area of preschool education and activation of Romani parents.

The NGOs will continue their discussions with the Education Ministry at their next meeting in December. Representatives of IQ Roma Service, Jekhetane, OSF Praha, ROMEA and Slovo 21 attended the meeting.

Slovo 21, ERGO Network’s member from Czech Republic, is coordinating the work of the coalition through the project “Roma Included”, which is part of ERGO’s Annual Work Program. The project is organized with the financial support of the European Commission’s EaSI program.

Source: Romea.cz

Update and steps forward: the 3rd meeting of ERGO Members

Update and steps forward: the 3rd meeting of ERGO Members

ERGO Network brought together its co-workers from Romania, Hungary, Czech Republic and Bulgaria for the 3^rd working meeting under the Annual Working Program (AWP) 2016 on the 20-21 September in Brussels.

The aim of the meeting was to exchange good practices and challenges that the members are encountering in the work done under the AWP 2016. On the first day, special attention was given to the work that is carried under the contract with ERGO for the Community-Led Local Development (CLLD). The ERGO team facilitated the meeting and helped the members to map out the challenges and together with their partners to find solutions for a better collaboration and implementation of the CLLD on the ground.

Furthermore, special emphasis was given to the Roma coalition building and the ways that those coalitions are being created at the national and regional level. For example in the Czech Republic, the Roma coalition strengthened its position and became a partner for the Roma Coordination Unit. In Romania, the coalition taken over by our partner Nevo Parudimos, Roma Forum, is already in good terms with the National Federation of the Local Action Groups and advocates for the participation of Roma people in Local Action Groups (LAGs).

The most challenging issues concerning the development and participation of Roma people in the CLLD process through the LAGs, identified by our members in all countries, are lack of trust in the NGOS and institutions in charge and the political environment.

On the second day, special focus was put on the methodology and guidance on how our members should carry out their research on Roma beneficiaries of ESF supported projects and prepare their policy papers for the remaining year. The objective of the research is to capture the views of beneficiaries of (training) projects – which is mostly missing from regular project and program evaluations. The research is to provide an indication of the longer term impact of such projects on the individuals taking part as well as give an idea of the quality of the projects.

In addition, the ERGO members were updated with the ongoing work of ERGO at European level and together we planned further steps for the future.

Roma Regional Meeting on Roma community development in Romania

Roma Regional Meeting on Roma community development in Romania

Nevo Parudimos, as a member of ERGO Network, organized a working meeting on the 14th of September in Timisoara on the theme of „Local Development Strategies and the role of Roma NGO’s in their implementation”.At the meeting participated Roma NGO’s from 3 counties of the Western Region of Romania (8 representatives). They expressed their interest in collaborating with the Local Action Groups (LAGs) management team in order to apply for the calls on the Strategies’ social measures targeting the Roma communities. They underlined the need for special training in order to be able to apply for LAGs call and to be built their capacity of implementing these projects as the need for active measures is well-known and could be a priority in certain situations. The Comunity Local Led Development process was explained by the Nevo Parudioms’team and the LAG’s activity within their area of interest (the LAGs where the Roma NGO’s have their activity).

The participants’ NGOs have also shown their interest and commitment to attend and be involved within Roma Forum platform and activities.

More info about Nevo Parudioms here.