Роми

The findings of the study commissioned by the EESC and carried out in 27 Member States show that there is widespread frustration and distrust among the Roma community and civil society organisations. It seems that the National Roma Integration Strategies (NRIs) have not met the growing expectations of the Roma.
The instruments and resources available appear insufficient to compensate for the continuing negative impact of discrimination and exclusion. The EESC feels that a rights-based approach is needed and emphasises that organised civil society, including Roma organisations and lobbies, must be fully involved throughout the development of NRISs (planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation).

The COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak constitutes a grave emergency and represents a situation unprecedented since the end of the Second World War. Especially for the most deprived, the crisis risks disrupting the support provided by the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD). The impact of this crisis shows that specific measures are urgently needed to protect the most vulnerable from the disease itself and also to ensure that FEAD assistance still reaches them, despite the current constraints of the crisis. In order to properly address the challenges faced by public authorities and partner organisations in the implementation of the fund during the crisis, the Commission proposes to amend the FEAD Regulation. The proposed changes are necessary so that managing authorities, partner organisations and other actors working to implement the fund can react swiftly to the urgent needs of the target groups.