Assistance to the Roma community

TIRANA, July 12 – The European Union Delegation in Albania, the United Nations Development Programme and the Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities launched Tuesday a Joint Project which will support the Social Inclusion of Roma and Egyptian Communities of Albania.
The new project aims at contributing towards social, economic and political empowerment of Roma and Egyptian communities in Albania. Implemented in the regions of Berat, Korca and Vlora over the course of two years, the project main components include infrastructure development, capacity building for civil society organizations and entrepreneurial support.
The project will also assist the ministry’s Technical Secretariat for Roma to strengthen its capacities for implementing and monitoring social inclusion policies.
UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Zineb Touimi-Benjelloun said that, “We should work with a multi-dimensional approach to address issues related to social exclusion. This project will enable the implementation of national policies and strategies for the benefit of Roma and Egyptian communities. In this regard, the cooperation between local and central authorities is of essential”.
Earlier this year Albania’s state ombudsman moved dozens of homeless members of the Roma community into his Tirana office to highlight their plight as a cold snap hits the region. The Roma, or Gypsies, were left without shelter after being twice evicted from private land on the fringes of Tirana where they had set up tents. Later they were moved at a former military barrack renovated by the authorities.
Most of Albania’s Roma live in tents or ramshackle homes in city outskirts, and lack access to adequate housing, education and employment.
After that incident the European Union said that part of the 82 million euros in aid to Albania over the next two years also covered social inclusion of the country’s Roma community.