On October 21st, European Roma Institute for Art and Culture in Belgrade, Serbia, hosted a round table attended by Claudia Roth, Vice-President of the German Bundestag, H.E. Thomas Schieb, Ambassador to Serbia, Roma leaders, and representatives of organizations focusing on Roma culture, education and inclusion in Serbia and in the Western Balkans region.
During the meeting, Mr. Redjepali Chupi, co-director of Roma Education Fund, emphasized the importance of empowering Roma people, especially by offering them support in the education and the employment process, as REF is already doing for 16 years.
“We are very grateful to the German government for supporting the project Employment Empowerment of Young Roma, funded by the German Financial Cooperation implemented by KfW on behalf of the German Government – Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. Based on the experience and results achieved through the implementation of both phases of this project, I hope that the successful cooperation between REF and KfW will continue with the same intensity, not only in Serbia but also in the Western Balkans – Redjepali Chupi.
Towards the end of the meeting, both the representatives of ERIAC and REF stated that they will continue to relentlessly work and advocate for the introduction in the mandatory school curricula of lessons about Roma history and culture in order to strengthen self-confidence and reduce prejudice and stereotypes towards Roma. Ms. Claudia Roth, Vice-President of the German Bundestag, also underlined the importance of reducing prejudice and stereotypes towards Roma.
Jadranka Ivkovic, ERIAC Serbia | Timea Junghaus, ERIAC | Dejan Marković, Forum Roma Serbia | Časlav Ninković Council of Europe | Milovan Pisari, Center for Applied History
