International Roma Day: Statement by Vice-President Jourová, Commissioner Dalli and Commissioner Várhelyi

Ahead of the International Roma Day on 8 April, Vice-President for Values and Transparency, Vĕra Jourová, Commissioner for Equality, Helena Dalli, and Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations, Olivér Várhelyi, issued the following statement:

“On International Roma Day, we celebrate our largest European minority. 

We celebrate their diversity, language, arts and culture and their contribution to European history.

We see encouraging developments in several Member States and enlargement countries which actively address antigypsyism and fight against Roma discrimination. 

Yet progress is too slow and too little. Too many Roma still do not have equal access to education, employment, healthcare or housing.

We have to work together on local, national and regional level, and always together with Roma, to achieve real equality in their every day lives. 

This year, we are joining our forces with the Council of Europe on the EQUIROM project to combat stereotypes about Roma people in the media. We want to build positive narratives, focusing in particular on Roma women and youth, and to raise awareness about the culture of Roma and history, including about the Roma Holocaust.

We call on EU and enlargement countries to implement all measures under the European Roma Strategic Framework and to step up efforts to combat antigypsyism and anti-Roma stereotypes. Together, we must build a culture of support and inclusion and honour Roma people's contribution to our European cultural heritage.”

Background

The Roma are Europe's largest ethnic minority with around 10-12 million Roma population of whom more than six million are living in the EU and four in the enlargement countries (the Western Balkans region,  Türkiye, Ukraine, Republic of Moldova and Georgia).

Although their situation has seen certain improvements both in the EU and in the enlargement countries – predominantly in the area of education – Europe still has a long way to go to achieve real equality for Roma. Marginalisation persists, and many Roma continue to face a combination of widespread discrimination, anti-Roma racism and antigypsyism and socioeconomic exclusion in their daily lives.

As shown in 2022 survey of the European Union Agency of Fundamental Rights (FRA), there is a persisting impact of antigypsyism that prevents many Roma from enjoying their fundamental rights regarding education, employment, healthcare and housing. The Communication adopted by the Commission on 9 January 2023, reviewing the national Roma strategic frameworks across the European Union (EU) and Western Balkans highlighted the need to strengthen the commitment at EU and national level.

The new EU Roma Strategic Framework, presented by the Commission in October 2020, put forward new targets and recommendations for Member States to make headway in providing the vital support that so many Roma living in the EU still need. It also promotes Roma equality, inclusion and participation in  their external action, in particular under their enlargement and neighbourhood policies. The Strategic Framework was a direct contribution to the implementation of the EU Action Plan against racism 2020-2025, and part of President von der Leyen's commitment to a Union of Equality.

Through its 2023 Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme (CERV) the European Commission makes 20 million euro available for projects combatting all forms of discrimination. The objective of the specific call  for proposals to promote equality and to fight against racism, xenophobia and discrimination, is to support specific actions to prevent and fight against intolerance, racism, xenophobia, and discrimination, in particular on grounds of racial or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, including when this manifests in the form of antigypsyism.

For More Information

Website - Project EQUIROM [link available as of the week of 11 April]

Website - Roma equality, inclusion and participation in the EU

Website - EU support to Roma Integration in the Western Balkans

Survey - 2022 survey of the European Union Agency of Fundamental Rights on Roma

Communication -  Assessment report of the Member States' national Roma strategic frameworks

Council of Europe - Strategic Action Plan for Roma and Traveller Inclusion 2020 - 2025