Phase I

Phase I of the Joint Programme between the European Union (DG NEAR) and the Council of Europe - ROMACTED, “Promoting good governance and Roma empowerment at local level” was implemented in seven Beneficiaries in the Western Balkans and Turkey from 1 May 2017 until 31 December 2020.

ROMACTED AT A GLANCE

ROMACTED Phase I at a Glance: Beneficiaries

Updated in December 2020

synergies per beneficiary

Albania

The programme provided international expertise in the design of bylaws of Law No. 22/2018 'On Social Housing' within the Ministry of Finance and Economy. The Directorate of Housing held consultations on secondary legislation for social housing in Albania on preventing forced eviction of vulnerable groups and introducing 5% quota for Roma beneficiaries per all the six housing programmes prescribed.This process is substantially supported by ROMACTED Programme and the 'Leave No One Behind'- Joint Programme of the United Nations in Albania;
The ROMACTED facilitator awarded as a winner of the 'Unknown Heroes' EU Award for Roma Integration 2019 in the Western Balkans and Turkey;
Local authorities in Roskovec provided support to the infrastructural priorities of the Roma community living in Kurjan and setting the power transformer for the village. Open courses were provided for Roma citizens to gain reading and writing skills. A Roma mediator was employed in the multi-functional community centre;
Two meetings were organised with Civil Society Organisations in Korca and Fier in terms of supporting the design of the Local Action Plans for Integration of Roma and Egyptian Minorities 2019-2022;
As the second call of applications for civil society organisations was opened by the Regional Local Democracy Programme (ReLOaD), ROMACTED facilitators organised information sessions with the Roma and Egyptian CSOs in Elbasan, Korça, Përmet and Roskovec, which are both ROMACTED and ReLOaD Programme municipalities;
The “Municipalities for Europe” Programme, which targets 61 municipalities in Albania, provided all data sets collected during the consecutive years of 2017 and 2018 for the purpose of the design of the Local Action Plans for Roma Integration;
The current sub-granting call in the framework of the project 'Youth Standing Up for Human Rights in Albania' implemented by World Vision Albania and South East European Youth Network with financial assistance from the European Commission – European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights. Roma civil society organisation in partnership with the municipalities of Korça, Vlora, Elbasan and Fier were supported to apply in the Second Call of Proposal, to enable the implementation of a second project foreseen in the Local Action Plans for Roma Integration 2019-2022, in addition to the ROMACTED small grant scheme funding;
Joint activities with the Commissioner for the Protection against Discrimination in December 2019 in Korça, Pogradec and Vlora;
The mayor of Roskovec received the ‘Most Roma-friendly mayor’ prize in 2019 for Roma Integration in the framework of the project ‘Joint initiative to empower Roma civil society in the Western Balkans and Turkey’, implemented by ERGO Network and Roma Active Albania. The ROMACTED support team has been actively involved in encouraging the local actors to apply for the prize.

Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Ministry of Human Rights and Refugees (MHRR) actively supports the implementation of the Programme at central level. ROMACTED is a valuable instrument because it provides support to the current efforts made by the state towards Roma inclusion and empowerment at local level. In 2018, the MHRR allocated 1 million EUR towards the implementation of Action Plans for Housing, Employment and Health. Additionally, 30,000 EUR were allocated to Roma NGOs and with a further 30,000 EUR for Roma education expected by the end of 2019;
Care International is implementing the ‘Young Roma for Rights and Inclusion’ project, funded by the EUD in five ROMACTED beneficiary municipalities. The project is jointly coordinated by all municipalities to ensure synergies, and through this, four Roma mediators have been employed in the municipalities of the ROMACTED Programme and Centers for Social Welfare;
Within the framework of an OSCE programme related to Roma youth empowerment, four mediators participated in the training organised by the OSCE on Roma youth and social rights. In addition, the OSCE participates at the MTG meetings and provides help with regard to Roma education issues;
Caritas Switzerland is currently implementing ‘Pre-school Education for All Children’ – PEACH, aiming to include children in a half-day and compulsory pre-school programme. It was agreed that the emphasis would be put on Roma children, as they are often the children not attending pre-school education. Additionally, Caritas will also work on Roma housing issues in some ROMACTED municipalities (Kakanj, Bijeljina and Donji Vakuf);
UNDP’s ReLOaD Programme is being implemented in three ROMACTED municipalities. It was agreed that cooperation with ROMACTED will be developed with a focus on capacity-building for municipal officials and providing support to local Roma NGOs in their applications for the small grants scheme. Through the synergy with this programme, Roma NGOs from joint municipalities were encouraged and helped with their applications for the small grants scheme as a part of the ReLOaD Programme;
KALI SARA is currently implementing ‘Advocacy for Socio-Economic Inclusion of Roma’ in BiH, in three ROMACTED municipalities (Visoko, Brcko and Prnjavor) with a focus on programme budgeting and Roma sensitive budgeting. Joint MTG meetings are conducted;
The Roma Education Fund (REF) project is also being implemented in three of the ROMACTED municipalities (Tuzla, Kakanj and Visoko), focusing on the provision of scholarships for Roma high school students;
The Federal Employment Bureau, ROMACTED partner NGO Romalen, Caritas and the Council of Europe are currently supporting the employment of 20 mediators in schools and pre-schools and as community mediators in Kakanj, Visoko, Donji Vakuf and Tuzla;
The mayors of Bijeljina (2018) and Kakanj (2019) received the ‘Most Roma-friendly mayor’ prize for Roma Integration in the framework of the project ‘Joint initiative to empower Roma civil society in the Western Balkans and Turkey’, implemented by ERGO Network and Roma Active Albania. The ROMACTED support team has been actively involved in encouraging the local actors to apply for the prize.

Kosovo*

Ministry of Local Government Administration (MLGA) - a complimentary synergy has been developed with regards to building the capacity of local administrations i.e. principles of good governance, Roma social inclusion, project cycle, etc. Cooperation was extended with the Ministry about the indicators on Municipal Performance. A specific indicator has been developed by ROMACTED, based on the format and the parameters of the Ministry, and in line with ROMACTED objectives. This indicator has been shared with the Ministry for consideration;
Ministry of Education Science and Technology (MEST) - synergy created to provide support in education, namely on enacting administrative instructions and/or affirmative action about inclusive policies at municipal level;
Office of Community Affairs in Prime Ministers cabinet (OCA) – cooperation has been agreed regarding community-related projects with ROMACTED municipalities. Also, synergies in coordination of the Roma-related issues at policy level have been established;
Roma Versitas Kosovo (RVK) – cooperation and support of the fifth edition of the Rolling Film Festival in Pristina. The event gathered film makers of Roma and non-Roma origin who promoted Roma culture and history. The festival was attended by a plethora of interest groups from various backgrounds; In addition, with Roma Versitas, coordination have been established with regard to the data collection about the number and scope of studies of the Roma students in all beneficiary municipalities. Lists of students with detailed information is shared by Roma Versitas. An outreach with potential students was conducted in some of the ROMACTED municipalities together with Roma Versitas;
UNDP ReLOaD – information was shared and coordinated with respect to the UNDP ReLOaD grant application procedure for two municipalities, including with Roma NGOs on the procedures of the application procedure. A practice of regular coordination meetings between two programmes has been established;
Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Rural Development – cooperation has been established in regard to the agricultural grants for small farmers. The call was coordinated with the Deputy Minister with the aim of distributing the information to potential Roma farmers. ROMACTED identified and shared information with the farmers;
Peace Corps - The support team was invited to present ROMACTED Programme during a training event for the 6th cohort of Peace Corps volunteers in Kosovo. Following this cooperation, a Peace Corps volunteer was placed with the Roma NGO to help the NGO Bram for a three-month period to build its capacities and provide support with English language learning.
OSCE – coordination and exchange on Roma-related issues has been established specifically with the Department of Human Rights and Communities. In the coordination effort, OSCE staff from the region were invited to participate at the Joint Meetings between the CAG and IWG of the beneficiary municipalities. In addition, OSCE’s call for Summer School participants was shared among young CAG members. Several of them participated in the school, which was aimed at promoting cross-regional exchanges and building upon the professional skills of young political experts;
GIZ project on Capacity Development in Basic Education (CDBE) – coordination efforts were focused on three joint beneficiary municipalities, with an exchange of information and project-related activities;
Advancing Together (ROMACTED Support Organisation) – Synergies and cooperation were developed with the Documentation and Cultural Centre of German Sinti and Roma on the occasion of the 75th Anniversary of the Roma Genocide. The educational and commemoration event "Dikh He Na Bister" was held in Krakow and Auschwitz, Poland, and gathered together ROMACTED CAG and IWG members of the beneficiary municipalities and a number of Roma youngsters representing Kosovo;
Roma Ashkali Egyptian Women`s Network contributed with their expertise to a half-day training with Roma women. This synergy greatly contributed to the sharing of information and increasing knowledge of the legal framework for the protection and promotion of women's rights in general. This expertise could be utilised in future activities concerning women;
The mayors of Fushe Kosove/ Kosovo Polje (2018) and Lipjan/ Lipljan (2019) received the ‘Most Roma-friendly mayor’ prize for Roma Integration in the framework of the project ‘Joint initiative to empower Roma civil society in the Western Balkans and Turkey’, implemented by ERGO Network and Roma Active Albania. The ROMACTED support team has been actively involved in encouraging the local actors to apply for the prize.

Montenegro

UNDP ReLOaD: A representative of the ReLOaD project participated in a panel discussion at the launch event and in the first National Advisory meeting. Three ROMACTED municipalities are involved in the ReLOaD Programme (Strengthening of local democracies): Tivat, Podgorica and Niksic;
German NGO HELP: The Mayor of Bijelo Polje requested a meeting with the German NGO HELP in order to create links with potential donors for housing of Roma and Egyptians. HELP is one of the main implementers of housing programmes in Montenegro, together with the Regional Housing Programme. The programme also shared experiences and lessons learnt from the earlier implementation of a similar programme implemented by HELP and the local municipality of Herceg Novi, proposing some measures to prevent risks, as well as possible drawbacks, to both parties;
Regional Cooperation Council (RCC): In August 2018, RCC and ROMACTED agreed to send a common proposal to the Montenegrin Statistical Institute (MONSTAT) regarding the updating of statistics on Roma and Egyptians. A representative of ROMACTED participated in the national consultations organised by RCC in June 2019;
In joint efforts between the Municipality of Herceg Novi and Roma communities to solve flooding problems in one of the Roma settlements, cooperation was established with the NGO HELP which co-financed the building of supporting walls in this settlement;
The Ministry for Human and Minority Rights of Montenegro organised a training event on “Roma-Responsive Budgeting” for members of the Commission for Monitoring the Implementation of the NRIS 2016-2020;
Communication with the Municipality of Kotor, the municipality neighbouring both Herceg Novi and Tivat, was established in order to resolve the problem of water supply for inhabitants of the Roma settlement Lovanja, which is a shared territory between the municipalities of Kotor and Tivat;
In three targeted ROMACTED municipalities (Tivat, Niksic and Bijelo Polje), three projects related to Roma are supported through a sub-granting scheme within the regional EU-funded project “Joint Initiative to Empower Roma Civil Society in the Western Balkans and Turkey”. These projects are implemented by three Roma NGOs dealing with education, culture and identity and strengthening capacities of Roma NGOs;
Through the regional Roma Education Fund project “Increased education opportunities for Roma students and Roma youth in the Western Balkans and Turkey”, all Roma high school students from ROMACTED municipalities receive mentorship support and internship opportunities. Currently there are 121 students in ROMACTED municipalities, which accounts for 95% of the total number of beneficiaries;
The mayors of Nikšić and Bijelo Polje received the “Most Roma-friendly mayor” prize for Roma Integration within the framework of the project “Joint initiative to empower Roma civil society in the Western Balkans and Turkey”, implemented by ERGO Network and Roma Active Albania. The ROMACTED support team was actively involved in encouraging the local actors to apply for the prize.

North Macedonia

UNDP ReLOaD: A representative of the ReLOaD project participated in a panel discussion at the launch event and in the first National Advisory meeting. Three ROMACTED municipalities are involved in the ReLOaD Programme (Strengthening of local democracies): Tivat, Podgorica and Niksic;
German NGO HELP: The Mayor of Bijelo Polje requested a meeting with the German NGO HELP in order to create links with potential donors for housing of Roma and Egyptians. HELP is one of the main implementers of housing programmes in Montenegro, together with the Regional Housing Programme. The programme also shared experiences and lessons learnt from the earlier implementation of a similar programme implemented by HELP and the local municipality of Herceg Novi, proposing some measures to prevent risks, as well as possible drawbacks, to both parties;
Regional Cooperation Council (RCC): In August 2018, RCC and ROMACTED agreed to send a common proposal to the Montenegrin Statistical Institute (MONSTAT) regarding the updating of statistics on Roma and Egyptians. A representative of ROMACTED participated in the national consultations organised by RCC in June 2019;
In joint efforts between the Municipality of Herceg Novi and Roma communities to solve flooding problems in one of the Roma settlements, cooperation was established with the NGO HELP which co-financed the building of supporting walls in this settlement;
The Ministry for Human and Minority Rights of Montenegro organised a training event on “Roma-Responsive Budgeting” for members of the Commission for Monitoring the Implementation of the NRIS 2016-2020;
Communication with the Municipality of Kotor, the municipality neighbouring both Herceg Novi and Tivat, was established in order to resolve the problem of water supply for inhabitants of the Roma settlement Lovanja, which is a shared territory between the municipalities of Kotor and Tivat;
In three targeted ROMACTED municipalities (Tivat, Niksic and Bijelo Polje), three projects related to Roma are supported through a sub-granting scheme within the regional EU-funded project “Joint Initiative to Empower Roma Civil Society in the Western Balkans and Turkey”. These projects are implemented by three Roma NGOs dealing with education, culture and identity and strengthening capacities of Roma NGOs;
Through the regional Roma Education Fund project “Increased education opportunities for Roma students and Roma youth in the Western Balkans and Turkey”, all Roma high school students from ROMACTED municipalities receive mentorship support and internship opportunities. Currently there are 121 students in ROMACTED municipalities, which accounts for 95% of the total number of beneficiaries;
The mayors of Nikšić and Bijelo Polje received the “Most Roma-friendly mayor” prize for Roma Integration within the framework of the project “Joint initiative to empower Roma civil society in the Western Balkans and Turkey”, implemented by ERGO Network and Roma Active Albania. The ROMACTED support team was actively involved in encouraging the local actors to apply for the prize.

Serbia

Standing Conference of Towns and Municipalities (SKGO) is implementing the Programme “EU Support to Roma Inclusion - Strengthening local communities towards Roma inclusion” where all the municipalities from the ROMACTED Programme are included;
The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) is implementing the programme “Inclusion of Roma and other marginalised groups in Serbia” with the aim of supporting the Serbian government in implementing the National strategy for the Social inclusion of Roma in the Republic of Serbia. The programme`s objective is to improve the structures as well as corresponding mechanisms and social attitudes. Municipalities Vranje, Kragujevc, Subotica, Kostolac and Zvezdara are included in the scope of programme;
Standing Conference of Towns and Municipalities (SKGO) and ROMACTED organised a two-day training for Municipal Contact Points, members of the Institutional Working Groups, and Facilitators on Human Rights and Local Strategic Planning between 23-24 May 2019. The aim was to build their capacity in meeting the needs of the Roma community in developing Joint Action Plans;
In cooperation with International organisation CIVICUS and NGO Civic Initiatives from Serbia, six young Roma, who were members of Community Action Groups, represented the ROMACTED Programme at the International Civil Society Week from 6-12 April 2019;
In celebration of International Roma Day, ROMACTED established cooperation with the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, organising a public lecture on "Strengthening Communities through Production of Knowledge on the Roma History and Culture". As well as the open discussion on "Fostering diversity in Roma communities - Roma LGBT", which was organised in cooperation between the Centre for Women's Studies of the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade;
The ROMACTED Summer School for Roma Youth was implemented in cooperation with the Coalition of Roma Youth of Serbia. The event took place in Novi Sad, the European Capital of Youth for 2019. From 19-22 September, 27 young Roma men and women participated in the event. The activity puts a special focus on participation of Roma youth in the programme`s structures;
ROMACTED was part of the consultation workshop to discuss the planned activities and priorities under the ‘Strengthening national and local systems for effective socio-economic reintegration of vulnerable (Roma) returnees in the Western Balkans’ technical assistance regional activity, which was organised by the European Commission, World Bank and UNDP.

Turkey

A ministerial-level meeting was held in Ankara by UMT on 8 February 2019 to foster the support of central level organisations. The local representatives of ministries required an official letter of support from the capital. Therefore, the UMT wrote an official letter to explain the project, including the approval letters from the ministries;
Strategic cooperation and coordination with the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policies was established. An important output of this cooperation is that the ROMACTED Programme in Turkey was mentioned in the National Action Plan for Roma Inclusion. The General Director of the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policies, Mustafa Nuri Nuruhan, participated in the multi-stakeholder workshop of December 2019 and directly interacted with the CAG and IWG members from different ROMACTED municipalities. The UTM and the ROMACTED Turkey Focal point were invited to participate in the evaluation and monitoring meetings of the Strategy Paper on Roma People (2019-2021);
Close cooperation was established with the EU Delegation. The UMT in regular contact with the EUD representatives in relation to the planning and disbursement of EU funds;
Within the framework of the EU Award for Roma Integration implemented by the Joint Initiative for Civil Society, the Mayor of Şişli municipality in Istanbul in 2017 and the Mayor of the Konak Municipality in 2019 were awarded the prize of “Most Roma-friendly mayor” in Turkey. In addition, the ROMACTED focal point for Turkey, Ms Elmas Arus received an award as part of the “Women Grassroot Activists / Unknown Heroes” prize.

*This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence.