A new initiative of local self-government bodies and Roma organizations, the National Alliance of Cities for the Development of Roma Initiatives, was presented in Kyiv.
Representatives from central and local government authorities from 7 regions of the country have joined the Alliance. According to Zemfira Kordun, the head of the Roma association “Chirikli,” the National Alliance has become part of the “European family” of similar projects initiated and supported by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.
“The idea of creating a national alliance emerged this summer as a result of the work of the ROMED-2 program in Ukraine, which is a program of the Council of Europe aimed at building cooperation and dialogue between Roma communities and local authorities. This will help solve the problems that Roma face in their communities. The Alliance can be local, for example, in Kyiv we work with the Darnytskyi administration, and in Zakarpattia, we work in Berehove, Mukachevo, and Uzhhorod,” Kordun informed.
The Alliance of Cities for the Development of Roma Initiatives is a new project for Ukraine and EU member states. Its implementation is carried out within the framework of the European program for supporting Roma communities and the European Alliance of Regions for the Development of Roma Initiatives (operated by the Council of Europe). In Ukraine, the program “Protection of the Roma Minority in Ukraine” started in 2013, with the goal of integrating Roma into Ukrainian society and protecting the rights of the Roma minority.
