1 Funding: some solutions for matching policy commitments with resources The European Social Fund Dominique Bé Second meeting of the National Roma Contact Points 7 March 2013, Brussels

2 European Social Fund Key principles Europe 2020 financial instrument 7 year financial framework +/- 10 bn / year +/- 10% EU budget co-financing 85% tripartite governance shared management

3 ESF allocations by priority ( )

4 Countries with large Roma populations did not allocate proportionate ESF in 2007

5 ESF reality turned out worst than planned in countries with large Roma populations

6 Why ? lack of political will reluctance of majority population to invest in fighting poverty lack of capacity central administration potential beneficiaries (NGOs, local authorities)

7 What impact on the ground ? lack of reliable data but empirical evidence of little impact on unemployment & poverty among Roma limited soft outcomes (basic employability skills, self confidence, interpersonal skills, etc.) lack of sustainability when EU funding stops

8 How to do it better next time no one-approach fits all situations … integrated approaches do education + employment + health + housing + services national + EU funds job-seekers + families in a desegregated way in cooperation with local authorities & NGOs (small grants) vocational training (construction, care, etc.) personalised support rather than one-off measures job placements [but challenge of transition to real jobs] self-employment schemes

9 How to design & implement funding aim at mainstreaming (beyond pilot projects) explicit but not exclusive (not to alienate majority population) consistency between funding & policies