BackThree new reports just published by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights focus on different thematic areas of its Roma survey. Looking specifically at education, poverty and employment, and gender, the findings all point to widespread Roma exclusion, where Roma fare worse than their non-Roma neighbours. All three reports serve to provide the data needed to help make Roma inclusion efforts more targeted and inclusive.
For example, the report on education reveals how on average only 12% of the Roma aged 18 to 24 who had been surveyed had completed upper-secondary general or vocational education, compared with over 70% of the majority population living nearby. This gap in education needs to be addressed as a better education can help lift people out of poverty. It can lead to higher qualifications and improved chances of gainful employment. In addition, education can also improve social skills and labour market flexibility in today’s rapidly changing world, thereby contributing to a more competitive EU.
The report on poverty and employment underlines the dire situation many Roma face. About 90% of Roma in the survey have an income below the national poverty threshold and only about a third of those surveyed have paid work, which is often precarious and informal. In addition, about 40% of the children live in households struggling with malnutrition or hunger.
Despite widespread discrimination, most Roma are actively seeking work. But concerted efforts are necessary to break through this cycle of disadvantage, improving employment opportunities as well as reducing poverty and hardship.
The third report focuses exclusively on gender. Although in general women throughout the EU still face inequalities in many respects; in the case of Roma women extreme poverty and exclusion reinforce these disadvantages and therefore put an additional burden on them. Across the 11 EU Member States surveyed, the average situation of Roma women in core areas of social life, such as education, employment and health is worse in comparison to that of Roma men. Roma women must often also run a household, sometimes without access to electricity, piped water, washing machine and other facilities that are taken for granted across Europe.
These findings provide decision makers with the necessary evidence for designing effective policies, supporting the European Commission's Communication of April 2011 on an EU Framework for national Roma integration strategies up to 2020. The Commission Communication asked FRA to continue monitoring the situation and to act jointly with EU Member States and local Roma communities, by providing assistance in putting in place robust monitoring mechanisms that can measure progress over time in a comparative way.
The FRA and the UNDP surveys interviewed 22,203 Roma and non-Roma people, face-to-face in 2011, providing information on 84,287 household members in Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Spain.
Source: Fundamental Rights Agency, European Union
