Bring about CHANGE! - for children from the Roma community in Albania

The project
In Albania, many children and families of Roma communities are being racially discriminated by society as well as by the government. By means of educational offers and by fighting for change they are supposed to become more integrated into society.

Challenges
Many people in the Roma community are not officially registered; they are missing fundamental rights such as the right to state services, medical treatment, and kindergarten or school attendance. For this reason, families are increasingly affected by crime, homelessness, human trafficking, and sex work.

Approaches
ARSIS's open day centre offers an all-encompassing approach: it not only offers programmes for children and young people, but also covers the basic needs of families: on the one hand, homework assistance and numerous creative leisure activities are offered and, on the other hand, information about one's own rights, compulsory schooling, family planning, hygiene and job opportunities is provided. Employees also use a school and leisure bus to pick up children and young people who are unable to come to the centre on their own. Regular basic medical care is offered.

The ARSIS organisation organises further training for specialists from state youth protection offices and social workers from non-governmental organisations throughout Albania. The aim is for both groups to be able to respond better to the needs and interests of children and young people from the Roma community and their families in order to actively improve their living conditions.

Through daily visits to particular areas of Tirana, the social workers can precisely identify the problems of the children and young people and their families and provide support directly.

More informations on Facebook: https://bit.ly/2RafZL9