1. Poverty and Social Exclusion of Roma in Europe Iulius Rostas and Christian Bodewig Washington, DC,17 October 2007

2. The Roma - Europe’s largest and most vulnerable minority Size of Europe’s Roma population: estimates vary between 7m and 9m 70 percent of the population lives in Central and Eastern Europe, and nearly 80 percent of these in EU 8+2 countries or are in accession negotiations. Demographics: Roma substantially younger than non-Roma population Diversity in culture, language, religious affiliation

3. Estimated Roma Populations

4. Why are Roma poor? Survey data from Hungary, Slovakia and beyond suggest that Roma poverty rates are a multiple of those for non-Roma population: e.g. Hungary in 2000 40.3% vs 6.9% below $4.30 PPP poverty line Evidence of persistent pockets of poverty in countries where overall living standards have risen A vicious cycle of poverty and exclusion Unfavorable starting position Low education levels and missing skills High long-term unemployment Poor housing conditions Poor health and nutritional status Segregation, social exclusion and discrimination

5. Education: Key issue in exclusion but also entry point Years of education completed by ethnicity, 2003 20-28 year olds

6. Multiple dimensions of Roma poverty in settlements in Slovakia Roma Poverty is linked to: Regional economic conditions; Degree of integration or segregation (proximity of settlements to non-Roma); Concentration of Roma (crowding and size of the settlement); Share of Roma/non-Roma in the settlement.

7. Decade of Roma Inclusion 2005-2015 Launched by Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovakia in 2005 Marks 10 year commitment to improve Roma living standards, based on action plans in: Education: promote access and quality at all levels, reduce desegregation, train teachers and provide assistants Employment: raise qualification and skills, boost activation measures Housing: desegregation of settlements and improved quality of housing Health: improve access and information Framework for monitoring and evaluation, Roma participation and international cooperation