Young Roma remain one of the groups under a significant risk of social exclusion in the countries of Southeast Europe (SEE). The persistence of practices of segregation, the high dropout rates, the generally lower educational attainment of Roma, etc. are all indicative of this phenomenon. Regional studies confirm these assertions- one study on Roma in the Western Balkans from 2017 showed that Roma still face limited access to opportunities in all aspects of human development, such as basic rights, health, education, housing, employment and standard of living. Their levels of community participation remain continually lower than the general population across all SEE countries.Despite the fact that more Roma girls and boys are attending compulsory education in the SEE region than ever before, when compared to non-Roma, they face twice as high unemployment. This is due to multiple factors: lack of information regarding available job prospects and demanded skills, lack of skills and information about education opportunities, lack of trust in people and institutions, lack of motivation, etc. Career counselling/guidance is very sporadically implemented, particularly in the countries of Western Balkans (WB). Another barrier to a more effective inclusion of young Roma remains the widening gap in the use of ICT and media. In this context, media literacy enhances the creation of knowledge driven, inclusive, pluralistic, democratic, and open societies. Such education needs to devote particular attention to vulnerable and marginalised groups. The proposed project is a direct continuation of the project Supporting the Social Inclusion of Young Roma Through Non-Formal Education, supported by the Erasmus+ Program. The proposed action is focused on strengthening the support of young Roma for finding employment and participation in community life - the project expands thematically into two new areas of strong relevance to the employment of young Roma – career counselling and media literacy, with particular focus on digital and social media. The main innovative component of the project is the development of customized approach to career guidance and counselling that will alleviate the aforementioned obstacles. This will involve techniques for raising self-esteem, accompanied by guidance in the process of their self-realization on the labor market, provision of information regarding available learning or work opportunities. In order to be able to successfully navigate their path to inclusion, the project foresees development of the capacities of youth workers and organizations working with vulnerable youth, to strengthen the impact of the action. Furthermore, another innovative component is related to the production of resources available in Roma language as well, enriching the modest corpus of educational materials in this language.
The overall objective of the project was to support the social inclusion of young Roma in Albania, Macedonia and Bulgaria. The specific objective of the project was to strengthen the social inclusion of Roma through provision of guidance and support in career counselling and media literacy. The project thus aimed to support the social inclusion of Roma youth chiefly by reinforcing their overall capacities for accessing and landing a job in their respective societies.
Lack of skills and information about education opportunities, poor usage of ICT and media, as well as lack of career counselling/guidance targeting Roma youth specifically, significantly hinder the access to labor market opportunities for Roma youth in SEE countries. Thus, the project aimed to strengthen the support for Roma youth in finding employment and participation in community life by focusing on these two areas: career counselling and media literacy, especially digital and social media.
<< Background >> Lack of skills and information about education opportunities, poor usage of ICT and media, as well as lack of career counselling/guidance targeting Roma youth specifically, significantly hinder the access to labor market opportunities for Roma youth in SEE countries. Thus, the project aimed to strengthen the support for Roma youth in finding employment and participation in community life by focusing on these two areas: career counselling and media literacy, especially digital and social media. << Objectives >> The overall objective of the project was to support the social inclusion of young Roma in Albania, Macedonia and Bulgaria. The specific objective of the project was to strengthen the social inclusion of Roma through provision of guidance and support in career counselling and media literacy. The project thus aimed to support the social inclusion of Roma youth chiefly by reinforcing their overall capacities for accessing and landing a job in their respective societies. << Implementation >> All proposed project activities were implemented during the duration of the project. This includes 2 mobility activities and 7 capacity-building activities, and and the production of five (5) intellectual outputs (IOs). However, the Covid19-related lockdowns and strict measures by governments, caused certain delays in implementation. Mostly the activities were organized during the spring and summer when states allowed travels. Despite the delays, all activities were completed with success. << Results >> - Youth worker knowledge and skills on career guidance and media literacy significantly strengthened (at least 60 youth workers who took part)- 2 curricula and 2 guides developed on career guidance and media literacy for Roma youth- the knowledge on career guidance and media literary of the young Roma who took direct part in the project activities enhanced (at least 60 Roma youth who took part)- increased awareness of policy-makers in career guidance and media literacy for Roma youth