Designing Roma Housing Improvement Strategies Presentation to HfHI ECA Outcomes of Initial Research 6 th February 2005

Roma Poverty Common Characteristics: -Long term unemployment -Income does not cover daily subsistence -Welfare dependency -Large households -Very poor housing and hygiene conditions -Poor health -Lack of access to public information and opportunities -Involved in shadow / informal economy -“Losers” of the transition to market economics

How is it different from the poverty of other groups? -Group most vulnerable to falling into absolute poverty and destitution and of staying there -Face extreme prejudice from all parts of society including public authorities responsible for their welfare -Large groups live completely segregated from the majority population and opportunities -General absence from educational mainstream guarantees several future generations will be excluded from socio-economic development even as economies improve -High birth rates -Coping strategies include participation in illegal activities and lead to further exclusion

Characteristics of Roma Settlement 1 Outside Major Urban Centres / Rural -Completely segregated from other population groups -Lacking most basic infrastructural and sanitation facilities (sewerage, water infrastructure, etc) -Lacking most basic utilities, if available illegally acquired -Illegal or informal by definition of public authorities -Isolated from basic public services (health, welfare, education) -Isolated from any socio-economic development opportunities -Close to environmental hazards (garbage dumps, polluted / contaminated areas) -Destitution or absolute poverty is common

Characteristics of Roma Settlement 2 Close to Major Urban Centres / Urban: -Roma live among other urban poor or alongside urban poor -Partially or fully integrated in majority society, including education and in/formal economy -Live in degraded public / rented housing or squats -Theoretically have access to utilities but cannot afford cost, find illegal ways to access heating / electricity -Poor access to welfare and other public services and interventions lacking -Destitution less common, “working poor”

Roma Housing Conditions -Extremely poor living conditions -Absence of indoor plumbing and / or functioning sanitation -Absence or insufficient heating -Overcrowded -Use of inappropriate building materials -Not in conformity with safety standards -Wet / Damp -Degraded Housing -Infestation by vermin and lice is common

Barriers to addressing Roma Housing Problems -Segregation -Illegal status or unclear ownership of land on which settlements are built -Lack of family resources to maintain upgraded housing -Lack of family resources to pay utilities and the cost of basic services (garbage collection, etc) -Lack of political will to implement “radical” housing policies because of risk of being voted out of power by majority voters -Negative consequences of other policies -Housing is cost and investment intensive -Complex bureaucratic procedures for getting building permits

Role of Housing in Roma Poverty -Poor housing is both a symptom and a cause of ongoing poverty among Roma -Segregated housing is a key correlate of extreme poverty as it implies lack of access to socio-economic development, education and welfare opportunities -Poor housing conditions are responsible in part for the poor health condition of a large proportion of Roma and higher mortality among children, mothers and old people -The condition of Roma housing and settlements reinforces majority prejudices of Roma as dirty, lazy, and as parasites

Barriers impeding Roma breaking out of Poverty -Erratic educational participation and attainment -Overrepresentation among low / unskilled workers and the long term unemployed -Poor command of national languages -Society wide discrimination -Increasing segregation of Roma from majority communities -Continuing high birth rates -Erratic political will to support improving situation of Roma -Absence of “unbiased” data and evaluation results on Roma situation on which to base interventions

Some Basic Dilemmas 1 -Housing interventions are needed by most Roma families but they cannot maintain the improvements due to income poverty -Improving housing conditions in illegal settlements is urgent to improve the day to day life conditions of Roma families but it is not sustainable as real infrastructural investment will not be undertaken by authorities

Some Basic Dilemmas 2 -The housing conditions of Roma are such that resettlement in newly built accommodation is warranted but that would immediately imply further segregation, because most members of the majority don’t want to live near Roma and authorities will not risk placing Roma settlement near / in majority neighbourhoods -Given the level of exclusion, training for Roma families / communities in accessing welfare benefits would be very helpful but this would imply feeding welfare dependency.

Some surprises !!! -In terms of financing housing and other interventions, micro-credit can work under certain circumstances -In terms of income generation and sustainability of family nutrition, agricultural and market garden can work -Inter-communal solidarity and solidaire coping strategies have been observed among equally poor Roma and non-Roma in integrated areas

??? Open Questions ??? -Which kind/s of Roma should we be targeting? -Which kind/s of Roma poverty CAN we make a lasting impact on? -Which kinds of intervention are likely to be sustainable? -Which kinds of intervention model are likely to be suitable to the conditions described? -Which are the strengths and weaknesses of NOs for dealing with the situations described? -What profile of organisation/s can we work with locally / nationally to deal with the dimensions not within competencies of the NOs?