2021 EU AWARD FOR in the Western Balkans and Turkey - European Commission

Implemented by
             Funded by
                                           Roma Active
             the European Union
                                           Albania

              2021 EU AWARD FOR

in the Western Balkans and Turkey

                                  Extraordinary people
                                  promoting equality
                                  through employment

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This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its
contents are the sole responsibility of its authors and do not necessarily reflect the
views of the European Union.

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Printed in Belgium

© European Union, 2021

Contents
Foreword											5

Winner's profiles									                                                   6

  Institute of Romani Culture in Albania						6

  Fatos Koci										8

  The Citizens' Association for the Promotion of Roma Education "Otaharin"   10

  Public Institution Employment Service of the Republic of Srpska			         12

  Help-Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe Mission in Kosovo						                         14

  Viva Fresh										                                                       16

  Center for Roma Initiatives								                                        18

  Red Cross of Montenegro								                                            20

  Fatma Bajram Azemovska								                                             22

  Roma Association Cerenja, Shtip							                                     24

  Roma Women Center (RWC) Bibija							                                      26

  Braničevo District Roma Association							                                 28

  Konak Municipality									                                                30

  Roman Toplumu Gençlik Eğitim ve Kalkınma Derneği (ROMGEDER)			             32

4

5

Foreword
Olivér Várhelyi
European Commissioner
for European Neighbourhood Policy and
Enlargement Negotiations

High quality, sustainable and equitable job
opportunities lay a foundation for long-term
improvements to Roma inclusion. That is
why it is such a special privilege to present
the winners of the fourth EU award for
Roma integration, each of them an example       I am certain that the creativity, courage and
of extraordinary people promoting               dedication shown by our award winners will
equality through employment.                    be an inspiration to initiatives throughout
                                                the region, as nations strive to fulfil their
The European Union is fully behind them in      Poznan Declaration commitments to raise
their efforts. As part of the Commission’s      the Roma employment rate to at least 25%
Economic and Investment Plan for the            by the time of accession.
Western Balkans (EIP), we are mobilising
up to €30 billion towards boosting the          This year’s ceremony, during Romani Week,
economic development and recovery in            is especially timely, providing policymakers,
the wake of COVID-19. In the Plan, we           activists and experts the opportunity to
specifically highlight the Roma in our          consider how these inspiring stories and
commitment to help strengthen human             examples can contribute to dismantling the
capital, with ambitions to nurture economic     structural discrimination faced by the Roma
resilience and deepen social inclusion,         in the job market.
including Roma integration.
                                                Improving Roma employment and inclusion
There is a lot of work to do. Employment        is the priority of the European Commission
among Roma ranges from only 13% in              and my personal priority. You can count on
Kosovo to 22% in North Macedonia and,           my support in your future work!
since 2011, the employment-to-population
ratio fell in all countries except North
Macedonia. Employment is especially low
among Roma women.

Contrastingly, as I am sure you will agree,
the quality and diversity of this year’s
entries show that people from all walks
of life can contribute to real and lasting
change - whether you are an entrepreneur,
public servant, civil society activist,
volunteer or private person, you can play
your part.

6

Institute of
Romani Culture
in Albania
Albania

In 2011, with just 10 Roma students in Albania, there was
an urgent lack of information on education, employment, and
capacity building relating to the younger Roma generation. This
is where the Institute of Romani Culture in Albania (IRCA) began,
as a voluntary group offering career counseling and education
for Roma youth.

The IRCA has made a visible impact on empowering the Roma
community to fully participate in society, by working with various
governmental and non-governmental stakeholders to develop
and implement innovative solutions addressing the needs of the
Roma community in Albania.

The institute has conducted programmes to increase informed
Roma citizen participation in decision-making processes, women
and youth employment, and to establish strong civic culture,
increasing connections between Roma citizens and public
officials.
The IRCA has worked to increase the capacity of trusted Roma
leaders, and has helped thousands of Roma people access
employment and education opportunities.

The institute will continue to support the Roma minority by
strengthening the knowledge and empowerment of the Roma
population in Albania, focusing on youth and women, and
working with private businesses to change their perspective of
Roma people. It aims to reduce illiteracy by preparing training
sessions and coordinating its efforts with other public and
private sector actors.

Find out more at irca.al

7

"Employment is one of the
greatest achievements of
the Roma Culture Institute.
We now have 400 Roma
people employed and self-
employed"

Blendi TAHO

8

Fatos
Koci
Albania

In 2012, Fatos Koci was working in Fier, Albania as a window
cleaner to support his studies. As Fatos’s cleaning business grew,
he started receiving requests for general cleaning of houses,
hotels, and restaurants, which he could not do because he did
not have the necessary equipment.

In 2018, Fatos learnt about a call for proposals offering social
enterprise grants to non-governmental organisations. The young
entrepreneur applied on behalf of Voice of Roma in Albania − an
organisation he had founded several years earlier to address the
issues affecting the Roma community in his country. With the
financial support he received, Fatos was able to purchase the
equipment needed for his business. As a result, Fatos’s social
enterprise currently has six staff members of which five are
Roma (four men and one woman).

Fatos’s social enterprise focuses on hiring Roma people
and providing them with professional training. The young
entrepreneur puts special emphasis on teaching his employees
work ethic and customer service skills. Fatos’s business is having
a positive impact on the Roma community and beyond, as he
changes perceptions of Roma people for the better.

Looking forward, Fatos plans to further expand his services and
hire more employees, especially Roma women.

9

"Roma families no longer
think about asylum seeking
now, and their children will
have a safer future as long
as their parents provide
sufficient income"

Fatos KOCI

10

The Citizens’
Association for the
Promotion of Roma
Education «Otaharin»
Bosnia and Herzegovina

A group of inclusion activists and parents of Roma school children
founded Otaharin in 2005. Since then, the organisation has
implemented more than 100 projects to strengthen Roma inclusion
throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina. Central to its success has been a
holistic focus on improving access to social rights, quality employment,
and public services such as education, healthcare, and housing.

The organisation currently runs an economic empowerment and
employment programme to improve outcomes for the Roma community
by focusing on, for example, strengthening employability, women’s
empowerment, and lobbying for better employment programmes. In
2020, a social enterprise operated by Otaharin (Agro-Plan LLC) provided
opportunities for 50 Roma men and women to supplement their
income and learn new skills. Furthermore, Otaharin supported 14 Roma
secondary school pupils by providing volunteering opportunities, while
offering work placements to two Roma university students.

In addition to its public engagement activities in 2020, Otaharin also
contributed to the Action Plan for the Inclusion of Roma in Bosnia and
Herzegovina (2021–2025). In doing so, the team helped to secure
official recognition of antigypsyism as the root cause of the exclusion
and marginalisation of the Roma.

The Otaharin team are now focused on expanding their empowerment
and employment programme and on monitoring the implementation of
the Action Plan.

Find out more at otaharin.org

11

“We want to bring positive
change, to promote
employment as one of the
most basic human rights; the
right to be employed and to
earn a decent income”

Dragan JOKOVIĆ

12

Public Institution
Employment
Service of the
Republic of Srpska
Bosnia and Herzegovina

With 76% of registered unemployed Roma workers unskilled, the
Roma population is recognised as a vulnerable group requiring support.
Together with the Government of the Republic of Srpska, the Public
Institution Employment Service of the Republic of Srpska (ESRS) works
to solve some of the key issues faced by the community.

The ESRS’s mission is to increase Roma participation in the labour
market by raising awareness around the importance of searching for
jobs and improving access to qualifications.

Through annual employment actions and initiatives, the Government
of the Republic of Srpska creates measures that are implemented by
the ESRS at operational level. With seven offices and 59 bureaus, ESRS
projects have increased the education, unemployment registration, and
employment of the Roma population.

From 2009 to 2020, the ESRS implemented 10 Roma employment
projects financed by the Ministry of Human Rights and Refugees of
Bosnia and Herzegovina grants.

Moving forward, the ESRS will continue to support Roma employment
and monitor the number of unemployed Roma people. It plans to
strengthen cooperation with employers, local communities, and Roma
NGOs to tackle the issue at local level.

Find out more at zzzrs.net

13

“We have managed to find
employment for 301 people,
which is the most significant
achievement so far”

Miroslav VUJIČIĆ

14

Help - Hilfe
zur Selbsthilfe
Mission in Kosovo
Kosovo*

Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptian (RAE) communities face higher
unemployment rates than the rest of the population, and are the
most marginalised communities in Kosovo. To address this issue,
Help supports RAE people with finding employment or becoming
self-employed. The organisation’s aim is to make them more
financially independent, boost their self-confidence, and support
their integration in society.

So far, Help has provided 50 micro-businesses with the
necessary equipment to become fully operational, boosting the
monthly incomes of the entrepreneurs and their families. The
organisation targets people who are not eligible for business
loans because they do not have collateral. In turn, the supported
businesses provide employment to other members of the RAE
communities, raising their quality of life.

Help also raises awareness about the importance of education.
So far, the organisation has helped 34 RAE people with business
and vocational training to improve their competitiveness on
the labour market, or teach them how to start and manage
a small business. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020,
Help provided laptops to over 190 RAE families, helping nearly
600 children to continue their formal education online. The
organisation also provided food packages, hygienic products,
and essential household appliances to 300 RAE families (1,100
individuals) with the help of local partners and suppliers.

Find out more at help-kosovo.org

* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and
the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

15

“It's a duty for us to provide
care for the minority
community members,
together with equal and
better opportunities, bringing
those marginalised to the
centre”

Shqipe BREZNICA

16

Viva
Fresh
Kosovo*

Since 2016, Viva Fresh has been one of the few companies
in Kosovo that provides employment support to people with
disabilities and people from the Roma, Ashkali, and Egyptian
(RAE) communities. What sets Viva Fresh apart from their
competitors is the geographical spread of their offices, which
allows them to offer job opportunities in 90 locations across
Kosovo.

Viva Fresh collaborate with non-profit organisations to offer
not only employment and wellbeing support, but also to help
integrate RAE communities into Kosovo society. They put special
emphasis on preparing people for the labour market and offering
training for different managing positions within the company.
The company continues to offer employment support to the RAE
communities even after the projects are finished.

Although 2020 was quite tough for the sector, Viva Fresh had
an average of 90 employees from the RAE communities. In its
efforts to offer good working conditions, the company provided
RAE staff in the Logistics Centre with private transport and
a daily meal. Currently, Viva Fresh has 64 RAE employees in
various regions and positions, including leadership roles.

Looking forward, Viva Fresh will continue to develop programmes
to help RAE communities, and to cooperate with relevant non-
governmental organisations and institutions to further increase
its number of RAE employees.

Find out more at vivafresh-rks.com

* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and
the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

17

“Our idea was to show
everyone that there are
always employment options
inside Kosovo and that with
further training everyone has
the opportunity to become
a supervisor and a senior
ranking employee in our
company”

Gazmir EFENDIJA

18

Center for Roma
Initiatives
Montenegro

The Center for Roma Initiatives (CRI) was established in 2004 as
the first female-led Roma organisation in Montenegro. The CRI
aims to improve the social, economic, political, and educational
situation of Roma and Egyptian women in Montenegro. The
organisation has implemented more than 90 projects that deal
with issues like domestic violence, child marriage, low education,
health protection, and the economic improvement of Roma and
Egyptian women.

In 2017, the CRI founded the Roma and Egyptian agricultural
cooperative – the first of its kind in Montenegro. The cooperative
enables Roma and Egyptian women to be independent from
their male family members, reducing the level of domestic
violence. So far, the CRI has enabled more than 100 people, who
are otherwise excluded from the labour market, to provide for
themselves by working in the cooperative.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the organisation
provided 11 economic packages to businesses in need and
hired 50 people to provide services (such as cleaning, haircuts,
mask sewing, health services, and assisting children with online
learning) in 10 Roma-Egyptian settlements.

The CRI has also actively participated in the working group for
the creation of the 2016−2020 Strategy for Social Inclusion
of Roma and Egyptians. As a direct result, 20 members of the
Roma and Egyptian communities were hired to assist state
institutions with implementation of the strategy.

Find out more at crink.me

19

"What inspires us is
that women should be
independent, because
without economic
empowerment we cannot
expect an independent
woman"

Fana DELIJA

20

Red Cross of
Montenegro
Montenegro

The Red Cross of Montenegro (RCM) has been actively working
with the Roma and Egyptian (RE) populations in Montenegro
since 1999, supporting them to achieve social integration
in Montenegrin society. This includes help with accessing
education and health services, socialisation, accommodation and
settlement, employment, and legal status.

In 2020, 30 RE people received psychosocial support training
through RCM, and 25 qualified in certain vocations. 15 employers
committed to providing job opportunities for the RE population.
RCM also established its first business incubators in the Konik
Municipality, a settlement of displaced Roma and Egyptians
in the capital city of Podgorica. The business incubators are
a unique measure to support nine Roma and Egyptian adult
entrepreneurs (five men and four women) through the provision
of free workspaces and utilities, tools and materials, registration
at relevant institutions, and accounting services.

RCM will continue to support this group of entrepreneurs until
2023, when a new group will be selected. It also plans to extend
its business incubator activities to municipalities in the north of
Montenegro, in order to provide equal opportunities for RE people
who live in smaller settlements and more rural areas.

Find out more at ckcg.me

21

“Integration is the only way
and the only solution”

Jelena DUBAK

22

Fatma Bajram
Azemovska
North Macedonia

In 2004, Fatma Bajram Azemovska founded the non-
governmental organisation (NGO) Sumnal with the aim of
helping the Roma community in Skopje. Seventeen years later,
Sumnal is one of North Macedonia’s main hubs for Roma people
(especially youth, children, and women) to receive education and
training, meet international experts, get inspired and motivated,
and improve their employability.

Since 2004, Fatma has helped around 1,000 Roma children,
young people, and women, of which around half have finished
secondary or vocational education, and some even have a
bachelor’s or master’s degree. Most of these people are now
employed and financially independent.

Through her active involvement in various projects and
committees in the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of
Labour and Social Policy, Fatma is working to make it easier for
adult Roma people to have their basic skills recognised through
non-formal education, so they can enter the labour market.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020 and school education
had to move online, a lot of Roma children were excluded from
the education system, because they did not have the necessary
equipment. Through donations and other programmes, Fatma
was able to provide electronic devices to struggling Roma
families in Bitola and Skopje to help their children keep up with
their classmates.

Find out more at sumnal.mk

23

“With my example I want
to reach young people and
women and show that if
we insist in our education,
employment opportunities
are much easier”

Fatma BAJRAM
AZEMOVSKA

24

Roma Association
Cerenja, Shtip
North Macedonia

Roma Association Cerenja is a non-governmental organisation
(NGO) located in Shtip, North Macedonia. The NGO’s aim is to
improve the quality of life of Roma people by promoting and
protecting their rights (especially the rights of Roma women
and children), fighting discrimination and domestic abuse,
raising Roma people’s education levels, stimulating their cultural
development, involving them in local decision-making processes,
and assisting with their social integration.

In 2020, the organisation focused its work on Roma women,
creating several projects for their economic empowerment.
Under one of these projects, the NGO opened a social enterprise
for laundry and ironing services that exclusively employed Roma
women with low literacy levels. The enterprise allowed these
women to earn their own income and feel more independent,
giving them a sense of purpose.

Through this project, the NGO learnt about the prevalence of
domestic abuse among Roma women in Shtip (80%), which
prompted it to start a new project to raise awareness about
this issue. The project allowed victims of domestic abuse to get
together in a safe environment in small groups of 6−10 women,
talk about their experiences, and receive help. As a result, the
project helped 60 women who received professional advice from
a psychologist and a social worker.

Find out more at facebook.com/associjacija/

25

“What I want to change
as a Roma woman is to
improve the status of Roma
woman in society and in the
family. It’s time to give her
the opportunity to stand on
her own feet, to be able to
get a job and be financially
independent”

Enise DEMIROVA

26

Roma Women
Center (RWC)
Bibija
Serbia

Roma Women Center (RWC) Bibija strives to raise the status
and living conditions of Roma women. The organisation has so
far delivered five projects focused on economic empowerment,
resulting in better employment prospects for some 700 people
living in Roma settlements in Serbia.

In 2020, RWC Bibija continued supporting women to gain
skills for employment, enrolling 50 members of the Roma
community in vocational training and employment counselling.
Each beneficiary received vocational and career guidance, paired
with support to search for vacancies or to start a business. The
Center also held information-sharing workshops on tackling high
unemployment, which attracted more than 500 representatives
of local government, NGOs, and the Roma community.

Experts in the RWC Bibija team are currently drafting
recommendations on promoting gender sensitive employment
and gender equality. They will be sharing these with the Ministry
of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs, the National
Employment Service, and the Ministry of Human and Minority
Rights and Social Dialogue in Serbia.

In the coming year, the Center’s strategic emphasis will be
to increase the number of Roma beneficiaries in five Serbian
cities, while extending cooperation with public institutions and
civil society. Beyond that, the team is seeking cooperation at
European level, to learn from and share innovative ways of
working.

Find out more at bibija.org.sr

27

“So far, we managed to
empower 700 Roma women
and girls and 20 of them
have managed to find jobs.
Economic empowerment
is crucial to fight domestic
violence

Slavica VASIĆ

28

Braničevo District
Roma Association
(URBO)
Serbia

Braničevo District Roma Association (URBO) aims to encourage
the comprehensive inclusion of Roma citizens in the City
of Požarevac, Serbia – with an emphasis on job creation,
employment, and entrepreneurship – through strengthening of
local capacity to foster new knowledge and skills among the
Roma population.

The association funds equipment for new and existing Roma
enterprises, and offers career guidance and mentoring support
for Roma entrepreneurs (with designing business plans and
sourcing funds, for example) – particularly young Roma and
Roma women. It also provides professional vocational training
opportunities in companies and institutions, and internships for
young Roma (high school students and graduates) in private and
public companies. By establishing an effective network of Roma
entrepreneurs, URBO aims to support sustainable improvement
of the socioeconomic status of the local Roma population.

URBO regularly conducts baseline employment market research
to assess the demand for workers in different sectors, along with
research on Roma in the local labour market, in order to inform
its actions and tailor the support that it provides accordingly.

In the future, URBO hopes to improve the knowledge and
understanding of all relevant stakeholders on the situation of
Roma citizens in the labour market in terms of discrimination,
marginalisation, and inability to access the resources and
services available.

Find out more at urbo.rs

29

“It is important to let young
people know they can
educate themselves and
find jobs and that euality is
indeed achievable”

Mihajlo JOVANOVIĆ

30

Konak
Municipality
Turkey

Konak, a district of the city of Izmir in western Turkey, hosts
one of Europe’s largest Roma populations. The municipality
has attracted well-deserved praise for its focused efforts on
nurturing diversity and strengthening the integration of Roma
people. Indeed, Konak’s Mayor, Abdül Batur, was even named
Turkey’s most Roma-friendly mayor in 2019.

Central to the municipality’s success are its inclusive values,
reflected in its close ties with Roma civil society organisations
and representatives of the local Roma community. Konak has
made great efforts to foster democratic participation too, for
example by establishing Turkey’s first Roma working group and
by appointing a board member from the Roma community to the
Equality Assembly of Konak City Council.

The leadership shown by Konak municipality delivered real
benefits for the Roma community in 2020, such as new
vocational courses to improve employment outcomes (especially
among women), measures to support social entrepreneurship,
and actions to combat discrimination in the job market. Other
results include new childcare provision to make it easier for
Roma women to take up employment, and a new Roma Culture
Centre.

Achievements so far lay the foundations for future plans, such
as a new education centre, designed to give Roma children
better access to learning opportunities, helping to bridge the gap
between education and employment.

Find out more at konak.bel.tr

31

"Two members of the Roma
community are currently
serving on the city council.
The work we do together
brings us forward"

Abdül BATUR

32

Roman Toplumu
Gençlik Eğitim ve
Kalkınma Derneği
(ROMGEDER)
Turkey

ROMGEDER is an association that helps Roma people to advance
their skills, access new opportunities for employment, and start
their own businesses.

In cooperation with the Karşıyaka Municipality, ROMGEDER
established the first Roma cooperative in Turkey, ‘Örnekköy
Roma Community Production and Marketing Cooperative’, in
2018. This aims to encourage registered employment by offering
a more accessible employment structure for Roma citizens
selling boiled and roasted corn. So far, 36 Roma citizens have
become cooperative members and been given a month of free
cooperative and hygiene training. In order to ensure their work
is sustainable, an agreement with the municipality relieves
members of taxes related to activities undertaken through the
cooperative.

ROMGEDER has also carried out various activities, projects,
and partnerships in order to increase the social inclusion of
Roma women. Since 2017, the association has run 20 sewing/
embroidery and clothing production/design courses, through
which a total of 500 Roma women have been trained, including
in CV preparation and effective job interview techniques. 15 of
these participants have bought a sewing machine and started
a business from home. Within 2 years, ROMGEDER aims to
increase the number of Roma women employed with their
support to at least 50% of their overall beneficiaries.

Find out more at romgeder.org

33

“Roma families no longer
think about asylum seeking
now, and their children will
have a safer future as long
as their parents provide
sufficient income”

Emin KARAMEŞE

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