español |
english |
Private area
Private area
European Network on Social Inclusion and Roma under the Structural Funds
Structural Funds: Investing in Roma
- News |
- Archive |
- Newsletter
Private area
European Network on Social Inclusion and Roma under the Structural Funds
Structural Funds: Investing in Roma
The Network on Major European Cities (EUROCITIES) held a meeting last 4-5th November 2009 on how cities can work with Roma communities. The meeting was a working group session with city practitioners discussing practical aspects.
This session was actually a first meeting with a specific focus on Roma, held in Ghent with the objective of having an overview on the current situation of the Roma around Europe.
The members that attended this meeting come mainly from the social services departments in cities from Stockholm, Ghent, Gothenburg, Malmo, Budapest, Newcastle, Manchester, Rotterdam and Belfast.
One of the main problems highlighted during the debate was that some cities in Western Europe have a high and sudden influx of Roma from Eastern Europe and they face multiple challenges after their arrival. A big subject is the political dimension of policies towards Roma and public support for them, as well as popular attitudes towards this community.
The main conclusion of the meeting was that cities would like to work further on the issue and intensify their exchange of experience in how to work with these communities (for many of them, Roma communities are quite new). In particular, cities would like to learn how to work more effectively with the community. Some cities already have well-established social work programmes but some feel that they still need to learn more.
More information at EUROCITIES link
