Hungarian Roma Strategy Plan

The Hungarian Government accepted the decree of the Strategy Plan of the Decade of the Roma Inclusion without a blackball or any dwellings. The Strategy Plan would fasten the improvement process of the economical and social status of Roma. The Strategy Plan of Hungary indicates comprehensive aims in the fields of equal treatment in practice, culture media and sport besides employment, housing, healthcare and education.

The Hungarian Government accepted the decree of the Strategy Plan of the Decade of the Roma Inclusion without a blackball or any dwellings. The Strategy Plan would fasten the improvement process of the economical and social status of Roma. The Strategy Plan of Hungary indicates comprehensive aims in the fields of equal treatment in practice, culture media and sport besides employment, housing, healthcare and education.

For the implementation of these actions the Hungarian Government will prepare bi-yearly Action Plans: the first Action Plan is to be adopted in September 2007.
As it has previously been reported, the Decade of Roma Inclusion Program was announced in Sofia, Bulgaria at the beginning of 2005. The Program aims to fasten the improvement process of the economical and social status of the Roma population in 10 years time.
There are nine countries participating in the program: Hungary, Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Macedonia, Croatia and Romania. The coordinating International Governing Board defined four priority areas that have to be concentrated on, these four areas are as to follow: employment, housing, healthcare and education, and all nine participating countries covenant in accepting the strategy plan of executing the programs.
The Hungarian Government has accepted the decree of the Strategy Plan of the Decade of the Roma Inclusion without a blackball or any dwellings and as of the first of July 2007, Hungary took over the Presidency of the Decade of Roma Inclusion Program. On a press conference held in the hall of the Ministry of Social and Labour Affairs, Edit Rauch, Equal Opportunities State Secretary said that Hungary indicates comprehensive aims in the fields of equal treatment in practice, culture media and sport besides employment, housing, healthcare and education, and for executing these tasks the Government of Hungary cooperating with the Roma Integration Council prepare action plans every two years.
The first action plan for 2008-2009, due to be adopted September 2007, defines tasks, liable parties, deadlines and also the sources for the realization of the programs. Andor Ürmös, head of department of the Roma Integration Office of the Ministry of Social and Labour Affairs, explained that there were approximately 700 organizations participating in the social debate of the program. He also added that development sources from the EU could mean a breakthrough in completing the task defined in the Action Plans, besides the EU sources, the Hungarian Government will also shape the annual budget in order to accomplish the activities of the plan.
According to the latest survey, the Hungarian Roma population is about 520-650 000 although the 2001 census declared only 190 000 Roma in Hungary. The Strategy Plan shows that the number of Roma children attending nursery schools is half of the non-Roma kids as well as the number of Roma children in educational establishments for the slightly mentally retarded is twice as big of the non-Roma kids in these institutions. According to data of the Strategy Plan alluding to a survey from 2003, the rate of graduating Roma students in high-schools are only 5 percent while the rate of Roma students enrolled in tertiary education only comes up to1.2 percent. According to the same survey, hardly one third of Roma men aged 15-74 years has ever had income from salary while only one sixth of Roma women had a regular job.