Problem addressed

Roma are the EU’s largest minority population, and despite widespread policy efforts to facilitate their integration, they continue to suffer from increased segregation, discrimination, and social and economic deprivation.  The European Commission’s 2019 report on the implementation of national Roma integration strategies revealed that 78% of Roma live in overcrowded housing, whilst only 43% of Roma adults are in employment. There have been multiple policy initiatives across Europe over the past few decades to address this. However, such initiatives have tended to treat Roma community members as passive recipients of social inclusion programmes designed and implemented by actors outside the community. This has an impact on the relevance of initiatives to the needs of Roma communities and their effectiveness in providing support.

Innovative solution

Roma-Net, launched in 2009, established a platform for peer learning to tackle the discrimination and segregation of Roma people. The project is built upon URBACT Local Groups, mixed stakeholder groups that bring together people from different sectors, including healthcare, housing, education, policing and politics, with local Roma organisations. Nine cities across Europe were involved, with Budapest, Hungary as the lead partner, and participating cities in Spain, Italy, France, the UK, Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary.

‘P-t-P’ exchanges took place among participating cities – exchanges of people-to-people, place-to-place, and partner-to-partner. Roma Action Plans were subsequently developed by each city, outlining a long-term strategy for Roma social and economic inclusion. Action Plans were tailored to the different cities’ contexts and challenges related to education, housing, employment, health, and social circumstances. Glasgow’s Action Plan, for example, recommends employing Roma as mediators and assistants in schools, to build a stronger connection with parents. The Action Plan of Budapest promotes Roma culture, and makes strengthening social cohesion and addressing negative Roma stereotypes in the city an integral part of the city’s image.

The network also organised six international meetings, so-called ‘learning clusters’, following three thematic topics: local empowerment and active community engagement; area-based approaches towards exclusion and segregation; and transitional labour markets. These transnational learning clusters brought together a total of 220 participants, including city representatives, Roma people, and members of Local Support Groups. The learning clusters were hosted by the participating cities and enabled people from local communities to come together, discuss issues related to the project themes, and learn from each other.

Key results and benefits

The participation of local residents in the development of the Local Action Plans helped to raise awareness and disseminate information, bringing the problem of Roma segregation to the attention of municipalities. Roma were encouraged to use their voice and share their personal experiences. In Bologna, for example, the project involved a communication campaign led by local Roma, who spoke out against the stereotypes they face in public talks, videos and exhibitions.

Another key result of the project has been a change in attitude amongst the municipalities and people involved. As summarised by Ann Morton Hyde, the lead expert and adviser for Roma-Net, ‘the municipalities became more aware that they have to take a participatory approach to Roma inclusion and Roma integration rather than Roma segregation’.

The project also resulted in the launch of small spin-off activities in each city. In Karvina, Czechia, for example, the municipality created a new position, ‘Roma Mentor’, enabling the municipality to engage with the Roma people more effectively and actively include them in discussions. Another example is the Kosice municipality in Slovakia which, as a result of its involvement in Roma-net, conducted in-depth research into Roma integration policies over a period of 20 years.

Potential for mainstreaming

The project received financial support from the European URBACT programme, a learning programme that enables cities to collaborate and develop solutions to common urban challenges by sharing good practices.

As Roma-Net involves a participatory approach, the project has strong potential to be transferred to another context and to become a long-term part of the community in any setting. The continued implementation of the Local Action Plans is a strong indicator of the project’s sustainability. The project has been especially successful in cities that created a follow-up phase or integrated Roma-Net in their long-term strategy for dealing with Roma exclusion.

Building on the current Roma-Net network, some of the participating cities (Glasgow, Budapest, Bologna, Kosice) joined the Roma MATRIX project, focused on issues related to racism, intolerance, and xenophobia, and co-funded by the European Union’s Fundamental Rights and Citizenship Programme.