DecadeWatch 2007 Update
 

The first DecadeWatch report, published in June 2007, reviewed the period from the launch of the Decade in early 2005 until the end of 2006. The DecadeWatch 2007 Update, available only as an electronic publication, covers the year 2007 and reports any changes and new initiatives that governments introduced in that year. DecadeWatch reports aim to identify good experience and highlight achievements that countries can learn from. They are an attempt to compare government actions and to provide a snapshot of whether, and to what extent, governments have acted on their Decade promise. DecadeWatch recognizes that countries differ in size—in the size of their Roma populations and their level of economic development—and therefore may require differences in scale of effort. However, it is important to gain some measure of political will and pro-activity, as well as to identify good practice and gaps across countries and priority areas. 


Read the full DecadeWatch 2007 Update (PDF - 212K) 

Overview: What Was Accomplished in 2007?

The Decade gained momentum in 2007. Compared to 2005-2006, this DecadeWatch Update finds that 2007 saw progress across all countries, with some seeing more significant progress than others, and major developments for the Decade as a whole: 

- Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Spain expressed their wish to join the Decade in 2007; Spain was the first Western European, non-transition country to join. The addition of new countries to the Decade is a powerful signal as to the importance of the Roma inclusion agenda in Europe and will enrich the process with new experiences and perspectives. (Albania became a full member of the Decade in July 2008. Bosnia and Herzegovina and Spain are still taking steps toward full membership.);

- Macedonia and the Czech Republic provided an example for increased government pro-activeness in introducing systemic change even over the short term. Macedonia began to seriously tackle the Roma inclusion agenda, by developing reporting mechanisms, making efforts to strengthen the Decade co-ordinating body and mainstreaming Romani issues into employment and health policies. The Czech Republic launched a “Governmental Department for Social Inclusion of Excluded Romani Communities” (Agency) which will promote local-level partnerships and innovative and complex social inclusion policies in marginalized Roma localities;

- During the first year of its EU membership, Bulgaria indicated that it is willing to tie Decade priorities to EU funding, especially in the area of school desegregation, by funding partnerships of Roma NGOs, local governments and schools to implement school desegregation action;

- The Decade remains the framework for discussing Roma inclusion both for the governments and Roma civil society of all participating countries. It is increasingly becoming an “Open Method of Co-ordination”-type mechanism for the exchange of good practice and peer learning. The Hungarian Government, the seat of the Decade Presidency in 2007-2008, has led this process by making use of financing under the Decade Trust Fund for a workshop on housing, jointly organized with Croatia, and in forming an expert working group on indicators for Roma inclusion; 

- The Hungarian Presidency and other Decade countries have taken the lead in calling for the adoption of a European Roma Policy, to be elaborated taking account of the goals and mechanisms of the Decade of Roma Inclusion;

- The Decade process aims at giving Roma a voice in the countries’ efforts at promoting inclusion and Roma are being increasingly heard at national and European levels.

Although the 2007 DecadeWatch Update finds increasing signs of enhanced and more systematic attention to Roma inclusion in most Decade countries, integrated inclusion policies with a focus on achieving and demonstrating results remain a distant goal.

 

DecadeWatch

DecadeWatch is the first assessment of government action on implementing the commitments expressed under the Decade of Roma Inclusion 2005–2015. Since the Decade aims at giving Roma a voice in the process of inclusion, this assessment has been conducted by coalitions of Roma NGOs and activists from all countries participating in the Decade. DecadeWatch is a contribution by Roma activists toward making the Decade a success. 

DecadeWatch is supported by the Open Society Institute and the World Bank. This support has included training and mentoring the research teams, as well as developing the methodology, and providing editorial and production support.

The first DecadeWatch report, released in June 2007, reviewed the period from the launch of the Decade in early 2005 until the end of 2006.  The information presented in this reports is based on research conducted between autumn 2006 and early 2007. The research involved the review of documents—policies, legislation, and independent reports and surveys—as well as interviews with officials and representatives of civil society. While the focus was on developments in 2005 and 2006, the analysis also often covered measures and policies that had been introduced before the launch of the Decade and remain in place. The members of the DecadeWatch team also reflected their own experience, often spanning many years, in reviewing policies for Roma in their countries.

The initial DecadeWatch report assessed government action, not the changed situation for Roma on the ground. Given the absence of consistent and systematic outcome indicators and data, the first exercise focused only on inputs: What have governments done since the launch of the Decade? DecadeWatch summarizes a range of indicators measuring the existence and quality of Decade Action Plans including the availability of data to report on progress, the institutional arrangements for Decade implementation, and whether measures have been put in place across the four Decade priority areas. This first round of DecadeWatch did not measure impacts and changes in outcomes for Roma. Systematic outcome monitoring, in particular comparable across countries, is currently impossible because of significant data gaps. Moreover, the Decade had only had two years of implementation, and it may have been premature to assess outcomes.

In identifying government action across all countries, DecadeWatch country reports aimed to identify good experience and highlight achievements that countries can learn from. 

The DecadeWatch team will work—together with governments and partner agencies and institutions of the Decade—to further develop the methodology and make a contribution to establishing mechanisms to measure the Decade’s success. The Decade of Roma Inclusion, an unprecedented initiative to promote inclusion of Roma, deserves an effective monitoring mechanism.

DecadeWatch Report 2005-2006

English

Download the complete report as one file: 

DecadeWatch: Roma Activists Assess the Progress of the Decade of Roma Inclusion, 2005-2006 (PDF - 1.71M)

Download chapters as separate files:

Overview (PDF - 266K)

Bulgaria Country Report (PDF - 83K)

Croatia Country Report (PDF - 83K)

Czech Republic Country Report (PDF - 72K)

Hungary Country Report (PDF - 84K)

Macedonia Country Report (PDF - 73K)

Montenegro Country Report (PDF - 72K)

Romania Country Report (PDF - 74K)

Serbia Country Report (PDF - 71K)

Slovakia Country Report (PDF - 66K)

Sources - General and by Country (PDF - 109K)

Bulgarian

Overview, Bulgaria Country Report and Sources (PDF - 681K)

Croatian

Overview, Croatia Country Report and Sources (PDF - 424K)

Czech

 Overview, Czech Republic Country Report and Sources (PDF - 420K)

Hungarian

Overview, Hungary Country Report and Sources (PDF - 444K)

Macedonian

Overview, Macedonia Country Report and Sources (PDF - 728K)

Montenegrin

Overview, Montenegro Country Report and Sources (PDF - 1.3M)

Romanian

Overview, Romania Country Report and Sources (PDF - 308K)

Serbian

 Overview, Serbia Country Report and Sources (PDF - 335K)

Slovak

Overview, Slovakia Country Report and Sources (PDF - 888K)

Roma Civic Alliances

The Open Society Institute (OSI) has supported Roma Civic Alliances, coalitions of Roma and pro-Roma nongovernmental organizations, in five of the countries participating in the Decade of Roma Inclusion: Bulgaria, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia and Slovakia. These alliances work with governments in pursuing Decade goals and also monitor government performance in carrying out the commitments made in their national Decade Action Plans. OSI is working to assist with the establishment of such coalitions in the other Decade countries.

Civic Alliance Contacts

Bulgaria
Toni Tashev: toni.tashev@yahoo.com

Macedonia
Nadir Redzepi: khamnrp@mt.net.mk 

Romania 
Iulian Stoian: iulian.stoian@acrr.ro

Serbia
Osman Balic: yuromcentar@bankerinter.net
Petar Antic: petar.antic@mrc.org.yu