1 Romanian Social Development Fund – reaching and empowering poor Roma through community development June 2003

2 Country context Population: 22,327,000 people, out of which 56% in urban areas 56% in urban areas 44% in rural areas 44% in rural areas Total area: 237,500 sqkm ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND

3 Romania – statistical information ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND Ethnicity structure: Romanian (89.5%) Romanian (89.5%) Hungarian (6.6%) Hungarian (6.6%) Roma (2.5%) Roma (2.5%) German (0.3%) German (0.3%) Ukrainian, Serb, Croat, Russian and Turk (0.9%) Ukrainian, Serb, Croat, Russian and Turk (0.9%) Others (0.2 %) Others (0.2 %) (Source: 2002 Census for Population and Houses) Administrative structure: 41 counties 41 counties communes communes villages villages

4 ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND RSDF approach and objectives Approach Approach Community driven development – participative approach Community driven development – participative approach Country-wide targeting of potential beneficiaries Country-wide targeting of potential beneficiaries Main eligibility criterion: poverty / social marginalization Main eligibility criterion: poverty / social marginalization Facilitation and support for involving the excluded Facilitation and support for involving the excluded Objectives Objectives Improving the livelihood of subproject beneficiariesImproving the livelihood of subproject beneficiaries Increasing local level organizational and self-help capacityIncreasing local level organizational and self-help capacity

5 Financial resources International Bank for Reconstruction and Development – for the Social Development Fund Project (USD 30 million) International Bank for Reconstruction and Development – for the Rural Development Program (USD 2.4 million) Council of Europe Development Bank (USD 10 million) Romanian Government (USD 12 million) Beneficiaries’ contribution ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND

6 Methodology / benefits “Bottom up” approach ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND  “Heard” needs SUSTAINABLE OUTCOMES  Informed people  Reached marginalized  Active communities  Responsible people  Ownership sense  Equal chances  Improved skills Information, education and communication campaign presenting potential benefits Simple, user-friendly application forms Social capital building – participation of all community members, relationships based on trust and cooperation Funds managed entirely by communities Participation of beneficiaries in reaching subproject objectives Equality of chances in subproject appraisal and selection

7 Specific steps towards reaching minorities  Facilitation – includes a special dimension of minorities’ participation (encouraging involvement of all ethnic minorities)  Facilitators belonging to ethnic minorities  Informative materials in ethnic minorities’ languages ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND

8 Subproject cycle – community-driven process  Communities are supported by facilitators to get organized  Leaders are democratically elected by community members  All community members participate in the process of identifying and prioritizing their needs, as well as in subproject design  Training in procurement, accounting, project management  Technical assistance by RSDF  All activities necessary for subproject implementation organized and carried out by the community  Material contribution to subproject implementation ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND

9 Achievements in supporting Roma ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND Roma community members involved in subproject implementation had good opportunities to develop their financial and managerial skills (and possibly apply further to other financing programs for solving more of their community problems). 79 subprojects financed for Roma (with about 3,500 beneficiaries): 16 small rural infrastructure subprojects 16 small rural infrastructure subprojects 58 community-based social services subprojects 58 community-based social services subprojects 5 income generating activities subprojects 5 income generating activities subprojects

10 Future steps to supporting Roma ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND More than 90 Roma communities will be supported by RSDF over the next five years, by stimulating the civic engagement and the learning by doing process, in order to break the dependency and the exclusion chain for all poor and marginalized Roma.

11 Roma poverty – a complex problem  RSDF addresses Roma poverty through all categories of subprojects financed (targeting all poverty related problems)  Participation in National Antipoverty Commission meetings approaching poverty problems including Roma poverty  Participation in donors meetings addressing Roma needs ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND

12 Case study – Roma community subproject ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND Location: Valea Hotarului village, Dragoslavele commune, Arges county – Roma village, with 583 inhabitants in 107 households Village characteristics: Extreme poverty People felt “neglected” and socially isolated Restricted access to facilities Community priority: water supply system “Before the subproject was implemented, we had to choose between looking up for babies or go to get water. Of course, one had to go, because one must eat. But we were always worried about the babies….they are little and one never knows….” “Before the subproject was implemented, we had to choose between looking up for babies or go to get water. Of course, one had to go, because one must eat. But we were always worried about the babies….they are little and one never knows….” (woman, 32 years old, beneficiary) “It was impossible not to get sick when you were drinking water from the same river where tractors were washed. It was especially hard for children…” “It was impossible not to get sick when you were drinking water from the same river where tractors were washed. It was especially hard for children…” (man, 50 years old, beneficiary)

13 Case study – benefits (I) Increased sense of belonging to the community Personal and community status improvement Improved livelihood by normal access to safe water for the entire Roma community ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND “When I go to work or to see my relatives, I always take a bottle of water with me. They do not have such a quality water.” “When I go to work or to see my relatives, I always take a bottle of water with me. They do not have such a quality water.” (woman, 25 years old, beneficiary) “I always miss my water when I leave the village. I am not joking, it is really different. It is ours…” “I always miss my water when I leave the village. I am not joking, it is really different. It is ours…” (woman, 32 years old, beneficiary)

14 ROMANIAN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FUND Case study – benefits (II) Enhanced social capital Openness of the communities towards the “outside world” The power of example Future opportunities “..now the police come here not only for giving fines to us. They come to take water, because they say it is of good quality. Before, when we saw the police, we were sure that they were coming for one of us. Now it is different and we joke about it…. “ “..now the police come here not only for giving fines to us. They come to take water, because they say it is of good quality. Before, when we saw the police, we were sure that they were coming for one of us. Now it is different and we joke about it…. “ (male, 40 years old, beneficiary)