News

A National meeting of the Roma non-governmental organizations will take place in Park Hotel Moskva in Sofia on December 9^th. The aim of the meeting is to put to discussion by NGOs the draft of the updated version of the Framework program for equal integration of Roma into Bulgarian society and to come up with a common position of the Roma organization about the major principles this strategic document should stand for as well as the mechanisms for implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the Framework program.

The meeting is organized in the eve of December 10^th: the International Human Rights Day. The meeting is coordinated by an Initiative group composed by representatives of Roma organizations all over the country: Deyan Kolev (Center Amalipe – Veliko Turnovo), Lilia Makaveeva (Integro Association – Razgrad), Dimitar Georgiev (Human Rights Project – Sofia), Nikolay Kirilov (Roma – Lom Foundation), Milen Milanov (Diverse and Equal Association – Sofia), Gancho Iliev (World without borders Association – Stara Zagora), and Sasho Kovachev(National Association of Roma Working in the Public Administration). The logistics is handles by Center Amalipe with the financial support of the MATRA Small Embassy Projects Programme of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Sofia. Drom Dromendar Newspaper is a media partner of the meeting.

The meeting will be opened with a welcoming speech from the Extraordinary and Plenipotentairy Ambassador of the Netherlands in Bulgaria Willem van Ee. Roma organizations from allover the country working on different level (local, regional and national) will take part in the meeting. Representatives of the European Commission, DG DG Employment, social affairs and equal opportunities will take part as observers in the meeting.

The common position of the Roma organizations will be presented at a session at 4.00 p.m. when representatives of the major institutions engaged with Roma inclusion and parliamentary political parties are invited.