Nine Central and Southeast European countries have made progress in advancing Roma inclusion since the launch of the Decade of Roma Inclusion in 2005, according to the Decade Watch monitoring report prepared by teams of Roma civil society leaders. However, countries must move from sporadic measures based on pilot projects to integrated polices and programs.
Sofia, June 11, 2007 - Nine Central and Southeast European countries have made progress in advancing Roma inclusion since the launch of the Decade of Roma Inclusion in 2005, according to the Decade Watch monitoring report prepared by teams of Roma civil society leaders. However, countries must move from sporadic measures based on pilot projects to integrated polices and programs.
DecadeWatch assesses governments' actions on introducing measures on the four Decade priority areas of education, employment, health, and housing, as well as institutional arrangements and anti-discrimination legislation. Country reports were prepared by Roma civil society alliances, and then countries were ranked on indicators on a scale from 0 to 4, with 0 capturing no action and 4 best practice (see table). The report looks at government inputs, not outcomes, as the Decade was only launched in 2005. The World Bank and the Open Society Institute supported Decade Watch through assistance with training and methodology.
”Cooperation between Roma civil society and governments is critical to moving the social inclusion agenda forward,” says George Soros, chairman of the Open Society Institute. “DecadeWatch is a critical component of this cooperation and in making the Decade a success.”
DecadeWatch Ranking by Country
Rank Country Score
1 Hungary 2.29
2 Bulgaria 1.84
3 Slovakia 1.82
4 Czech Republic 1.76
5 Romania 1.72
6 Croatia 1.70
7 Macedonia 1.37
8 Serbia 1.24
9 Montenegro 0.63
The country rankings not only track progress but also identify areas where countries can benefit from one another's experience. Hungary is the most advanced country in terms of institutional arrangements and policies, but each country excels in a particular area, for instance Romania with its health mediators program and Macedonia's employment data collection.
”So far, the biggest gap in Decade implementation has been the lack of data on Roma,” says Shigeo Katsu, World Bank Vice-President for Europe and Central Asia. “Only the systematic and regular collection of disaggregated and nationally representative data will allow governments to report on the outcomes of their efforts through 2015.”
The Decade of Roma Inclusion is a pan-European initiative to foster the integration of the Roma in nine countries, and the primary vehicle for a European solution to the challenge of Roma exclusion. Countries should place their Decade commitments into the process of European accession and integration, including through the use of EU Structural and Pre-Accession Funds as well as by partnering with EU member states, the Commission, and other EU institutions.
”Governments have put institutional arrangements for Roma inclusion in place, which can serve as coordinators of government policy,” says Gabriela Hrabanova, researcher from the Czech Republic. “But these institutions must be empowered by the governments and involve Roma in policy development and service delivery.”
Her colleague Toni Tashev adds “Political will is necessary to translate plans into government financing of inclusion policies and to ensuring that national programs filter down to the municipal level.”