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United Nations in Albania to scale up its support for the Roma community

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Albania
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UN RC Albania
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8 April 2010 - Today, on International Roma Day, United Nations announced further support to Roma communities in Albania. The Minister of Labour Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities Mr. Spiro Ksera, United Nations Resident Coordinator Ms. Gülden Türköz-Cosslett and Heads of participating UN Agencies signed a new Joint Programme, "Empowering Vulnerable Local Communities of Albania". The joint intervention, part of the One UN Programme in Albania will be implemented by UNICEF, UNDP, UNFPA and UNV in partnership with the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. The intervention will last for 3 years and has a total budget of 2.7 million US Dollars.

The new programme seeks to assist the most marginalized Roma and Egyptian communities and contribute to their social integration while valuing their diversity. It will support the participation of vulnerable communities in local decision-making - through identification of priorities and preparation of Community Development Plans and implementation of development works.

Assistance will go to enable the targeted communities to access their rights, particularly access to public services- through civil registration; community policing; establishing and strengthening network of Roma mediators in areas of health, education, and child protection as well facilitating vocational training and employment.

The programme will also aim to promote policies and institutional strengthening for social inclusion of vulnerable communities - through - capacity building and assistance to local and central government institutions; capacity building and partnership strengthening for Roma and Egyptian NGOs. The project will be implemented in four Albanian regions: Tirana, Elbasan, Fier and Durres.

The UN Resident Coordinator in Albania Ms. Gülden Türköz-Cosslett said: "As Albania moves towards European integration, the UN has broadened and deepened its assistance in the area of human rights and social inclusion, accompanying Albania's process of political and economic integration with a strong social integration agenda. The UN's work in the area of social inclusion addresses the inequalities and poverty of the Roma and Egyptian minorities and responds to the multi-dimensional problems they face."

UN's assistance over the last years has gone towards linking communities with the government, providing disadvantaged minorities with the tools and skills to advocate for their rights, and help develop capacities of institutions and pubic administration on minority rights.

Under an earlier UN Joint Programme "Empowering the Vulnerable Minority Communities of Albania" the UN facilitated civil registration, the implementation of small infrastructure projects, vocational training, and community mediation. At the regional level, a considerable number of Roma and Egyptian families have registered their children in the civil registry enabling them to have access in education, health and other social services thanks to UN's assistance.

In addition to birth registration, the programme provided free legal support to Roma and Egyptians in municipal registration concerning a transfer of residency, certificate of marriage, child custody, registration as homeless, unemployed, qualified job-seeker, etc, all necessary to access entitled social services.

At the central level, to support the implementation of the National Strategy for Improving Roma Living Conditions, UN has assisted the Ministry of Labour Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities and line ministries to prepare the Action Plan for the Decade of Roma inclusion, involving education, health, employment and social protection, housing and infrastructure, cultural heritage, and equal opportunities and non discrimination.

The 8th of April represents an opportunity for the roma communities around the world to raise awareness on the rights of Roma who are often subject of social exclusion.

Statistics on Roma:

In Albania, statistics on the Roma Community reveal that: Poverty among the Roma and Egyptian minorities is the result of social exclusion and discrimination.

Poverty among Roma and Egyptian communities has a multidimensional and chronic. Roma and Egyptians in Albania suffer from poor income and living conditions, a lack of access to public goods and services such as healthcare and public education, the labour market, as well as access to civic registration and security. A 2006 UNDP study on the Social Vulnerability of Roma in Albania reveals that the average income of a Roma household is 68 Euros while a non-Roma household in the same vicinity has a monthly income of 175 Euros.

In terms of living conditions, a 2005 World Bank study reveals that Over 40% of Roma and 30 percent of Egyptian families do not have potable water in their homes. Poor housing is considered the second greatest problem after food. Housing is characterized by poor quality, overcrowding and lack of basic amenities such as sanitation, sewage and potable water. In Roma-concentrated areas, families often live in shacks or in abandoned buildings previously owned by state factories.

With respect to education, the 2006 UNDP study on the Social Vulnerability of Roma in Albania reveals that 55 percent of Roma aged 15 and younger are illiterate compared to only 2 percent of the non-Roma population. The 2005 World Bank study on Roma and Egyptians in Albania: From Social Exclusion to Social Inclusion reveals that 64 percent of Roma and 24 percent of Egyptians aged 7-20 have never attended school.

The Speech of the United Nations Resident Coordinator Ms. Gülden Türköz-Cosslett can be downloaded here.

A series of cultural events were held in the center of Tirana as part of celebrations to mark International Roma Day The activities where organized by the Municipality of Tirana in partnership with the United Nations. Footage from the event can be viewed here.

For more information, contact:

Nora Kushti
Communications Manager
Office of the UN Resident Coordinator in Albania
nora.kushti@undp.org