Thousand children will remain un enrolled in school

Over a thousand Roma children at pre school age will remain un enrolled in school because they do not have personal documents. The parents do not have the money to get them birth certificates; they can not afford to buy them books, school material and clothes. The social conditions of many Roma families, their educational structure, not knowing of the language are part of the reasons for the marginalization of the education with the Roma population. In order to improve this condition the National Roma Centrum from Kumanovo began with a campaign for education of the Roma “The key is your hands”.

We are working with the parents in their homes and we have motivated them to enroll their children in school. We gave out school bags to the children from the preparation year and first graders. We achieved certain progress, so in relation to last year, when there were only 304 first graders, this year we have enrolled 400 children, said Slavica Curcinska, from the National Roma Centrum.

They say from the Center that the education is a very important thing for solving of the general situation with the Roma from the state and are calling from the government to devote greater attention to the education of the Roma children.

In order to solve this Roma issue this Roma decade is too small. 2-3 Decades more will be required in order to overcome all of the difficulties in the development of the Roma as equal citizens in the country, says Asmet Elezovski, the project coordinator in the National Roma Centrum.

Within the frames of the campaign a documentary was also made as a contribution for intensive inclusion and acceptance of the Roma children in the educational process.

Published in daily newspaper vecer on 12 September 2006