Combatting under-representation of Roma women in the EU

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) held a public hearing on the situation of Roma women, exploring ways to tackle the key challenge of under-representation while addressing the different kinds of discrimination this group faces on a daily basis.

A public hearing on The situation of Roma women: ensuring their rights and active participation was held at the EESC on 14 November. During this event, it was shown that nearly 12 million Roma across Europe (including 4 million in the Western Balkans and Turkey) face discrimination on a daily basis, often resulting in social exclusion and economic marginalisation for both men and women.

In the case of Roma women – where discrimination is based on ethnicity, gender and socio-economic status – this results in significant barriers to accessing basic rights and services such as education, employment, health care and housing.

Opening the hearing, President of the EESC Permanent Group on the Inclusion of the Roma, Ákos Topolánszky, explained that the situation of Roma women is "far from positive" adding that "fighting anti-gypsyism and promoting Roma participation is very timely, in  a context where the rights of Roma women risk to be perceived as secondary in general policies".

To combat and prevent anti-gypsyism, the European Commission adopted the EU Roma Strategic Framework 2020-2030, which focuses on seven key areas: equality, inclusion, participation, education, employment, health and housing. Atanas Stoyanov of the European Commission's DG JUST pointed out that the framework emphasises the importance of empowering Roma women, for example by reducing the gender gap in employment between Roma men and Roma women by at least half (reaching at least 45% of Roma women in employment).

Jaroslav Kling provided recent data on the situation of Roma women, highlighting that their lives differ from those of other women in Europe. On average, Roma women marry at 18, become mothers at 19 (both ten years earlier than the average for the general population) and live 11 years less than other women. There are also some worrying gender differences within Roma communities: only 28% of Roma women (aged 20-64) are in employment, compared to 58% of Roma men.

Isabela Mihalache, Senior Advocacy Officer at the Ergo network, stressed that Roma women are largely underrepresented in decision-making bodies, both within Roma communities and in wider society. She made valuable recommendations to empower Roma women and promote their inclusion in society, including: developing vocational training and job placement support; implementing entrepreneurial support; creating scholarships, after-school programmes and digital learning resources.

Advocacy & Communications Officer at the European Roma Rights Centre, Judit Ignácz, highlighted the issue of the under-representation of Roma women in the labour market, stating that: "Roma women are still very under-represented in the labour market. I think that the EU institutions must invest in policies that are really able to intercept systemic barriers faced by Roma women, ensuring the implementation and maintenance of these laws and directives in the member states, boosting as well the Roma women active participation in society".

All participants agreed that in order to improve their conditions, Roma women should be the key actors in the creation and implementation of such policies. For Angéla Kóczé, Assistant Professor of Romani Studies at the Central European University of Budapest, education is the pathway to improving the condition of Roma women and to help reach gender equality within Roma communities. Roma women must have the opportunity to go to both high schools and universities.

Ákos Topolánszky concluded the public hearing by stressing that, despite efforts made by the EU institutions, it will be very difficult for the EU to improve the situation of Roma women in the short term, especially given the situation in some Member States regarding human rights and the rule of law. He further highlighted that, in the upcoming period and in order to help protect Roma women, the EU should first work on the implementation of anti-discrimination laws in Europe.