Deadline: 15-Mar-23
The call for applications for the fifth EU Award for Roma integration in the Western Balkans and Türkiye is now open.
This year’s edition of the award is dedicated to the Roma inclusion dimension in the digital agenda and the green economy, which represent new opportunities for improving the position of vulnerable Roma women and men in the region in the future.
The 2023 EU Roma Integration Award will promote private or public initiatives by various relevant Roma and non-Roma players – public institutions, private companies and businesses, employers, teachers and civil society organisations – to enhance the role of Roma in both implementing and benefitting from the green economy and digital agenda.
Aim
- The award will help draw attention to concrete efforts by various relevant Roma and non-Roma players – public institutions, private companies and businesses, employers, teachers, civil society organizations – to enhance the role of Roma in both implementing and benefitting from the green economy and digital agenda, in the fields of, but not limited to, housing, employment, innovation etc., and digital policy priorities. Gender equality and the empowerment of Roma women will be an important dimension. The award will additionally help to recognise approaches and initiatives that have helped and scored significant progress and changes in the lives of Roma people, through the implementation of green economy and digital smart solutions, and that could be replicated in other context and places. Specifically, the award is intended:
- To further draw attention to the role and contribution of green economy and digitalisation for improving the position of vulnerable Roma women and men in the region.
- To promote successful models of green economy and digital solutions that have brought positive changes to the Roma communities.
- To make visible the support and work of the European Union for the Roma inclusion in the enlargement countries.
- To foster cooperation among the actors involved in the process of Roma inclusion.
- To ensure recognition and sustainability of identified actions implemented at grassroots level.
- To identify and share positive examples of work of individuals, public institution, private companies, business and CSOs and at local level in the field of Roma inclusion in relation to the green economic development and digital agenda.
- An independent evaluation panel will review the applications and select the winners of the award.
- Non for profit Civil Society and individual awardees, may furthermore receive a financial support to continue their initiatives in the field of green economy and digitalisation for Roma inclusion. These award winners eligible for financial support will receive a monetary award.
The criteria for selecting these entities and giving the financial support
The main selection criteria but not limited to, are: Please adapt to this year theme
- Extent of impact of initiative on quantity and quality of Roma integration, green future and/or digital agenda.
- Extent of addressing of gender dimension in integration of Roma.
- Extent of impact of initiative in Roma communities and lives.
- Extent of initiative’s promotion of equal treatment for Roma.
- Extent of sustainability.
- Success in applying a gender equality approach.
Funding Information
The award winners eligible for financial support will receive a monetary award of 7500 Euro the first prize and 4500 the second prize. All awardees will win a study visit in Brussels, Belgium. Each winner will receive a statue as a symbol of the recognition given by the EC DG NEAR and the event itself.
Activities
The different types of activities eligible for financial support, on the basis of a fixed list The activities to be awarded (whether through a monetary and non-monetary award) should have resulted in, or have good potential to contribute to, inclusion and support measures, through green economy and/or digital solutions, and may include Beyond the below comments please align with my track changes to the application.
- Advocacy and lobbying resulting on adoption and implementation of legal frameworks, strategies and action plans contributing to building and/or increasing to digital literacy, fighting online hate speech against Roma, access to digital education, employment, and services and empowerment through digital solutions for Roma.
- Efforts delivering concrete and sustainable results to assist Roma digitalisation of their companies, Initiatives improving the access of Roma to distant education.
- Education, training, mentoring resulting in increasing use of digital skills and increased presence of Roma youth in the green economy and digital employment.
- Digital literacy of Roma and building green economy sustainable future for all.
- Support resulting in improved transfer of technologies, know-how and competencies.
- Combating antigypsyism in the new challenging digital era and,
- Specific actions favouring Roma women empowerment.
- Roma Entrepreneurship resulting in increased opportunities for Roma in the field of green economy and digital agenda.
- Social – green economy entrepreneurship resulting in Roma empowerment.
Eligibility Criteria
The award welcomes applications and nominations from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia, The Republic of North Macedonia, and Türkiye.
The award of the winners falls under PRAG rules, 6.9.2. Financial support to third parties; to support their work in general. The eligible competitors should:
- Be Roma and non-Roma individuals or entities from public institutions; private sector and Civil Society Organisation (including teachers and healthcare actors, small businesses and social enterprises); and
- Be registered in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, The Republic of North Macedonia, Kosovo and Türkiye; and
- Having through their work made a significant contribution to capitalising on green and digital developments for the purpose of enhanced social inclusion of Roma in the Western Balkans and Türkiye; and
- The individual and entity has been implementing initiatives related to Roma employment/entrepreneurship of Roma men and women, in the context of green and digital agendas for a minimum of 1 year that for their approach or result constitute an important contribution to Roma access to development of the digital agenda and could be reproduced as model in other areas of the enlargement region.
- The entity must prove that the initiative for which the application is made has been carried out for a minimum of 6 months prior to applying for the award, and has already given results.
For more information, visit EU.