The following 14 and 15th of June 2010, the Federation of Roma Associations in Catalonia (FAGIC) will host a European Conference “Networking as a mean for strengthening participation – good practices, strategies and exchange of experiences between Roma NGOs and other Civil Society Organizations” that will take place in the Office of the European Parliament in Barcelona. This event concludes the implementation of the European Project “Empowerment through Networking – Fostering Cooperation between Roma Minorities and Civil Society Organizations”, financed by the EACEA within the “Europe for citizens” Programme and coordinated by FAGIC.

By creating networks and exchanging experiences between different stakeholders, the project aims at filling the gap in cooperation between the Roma organizations and those of the majority society. In this context, the objective of the conference is to debate on the different opportunities and tools for strengthening the voice of the Roma at the European and national level. More specifically, the conference aims at increasing the overall participation of the Roma through the building of networks with civil society organizations promoting non-discrimination and social inclusion.

A parallel objective is to discuss good practices and give recommendations for a greater cooperation between the Roma and non-Roma organizations. The Conference will conclude the 9-months of the implementation of the project’s activities, presenting reports from the project’s partners (ARCI Toscana from Italy and Zentrum für Politik, Kultur und Forschung from Germany) and discussing their findings.

Additionally, the Conference will concentrate on recent developments on the EU level related to the Roma issue, in the context of the current Spanish Presidency of the EU and reflect on the consequences of the economic crisis.

The Conference will count with a participation of keynote speakers, bringing together in these event representatives from European organizations, governmental representatives, political parties, Roma and non-Roma Civil Society Organizations, academics and other relevant stakeholders.

For participation and/or more information, please contact fagic@hotmail.com

Federació d'Associacions Gitanes de Catalunya
C/Concilio de Trento, 313 9.9
08020 Barcelona
Tlf. 93 305 10 71
Fax. 93 305 42 05
info@fagic.org
fagic@hotmail.com
www.fagic.org

Related articles
Date	Title	Feature
25.03.2010	EU and Member States must do more to integrate Roma	News