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6 November 2023
On 4 and 5 November 2023 in the town of. The second national meeting of representatives of Roma women's clubs and planning and analysis of advocacy campaigns in 6 localities was held in Bansko on 5 and 6 November 2023.
For two days the participants from the six clubs presented, analyzed, exchanged positive experiences and discussed the planning, construction, implementation and current status of advocacy campaigns in the towns of Dupnitsa, Botevgrad, Rakitovo, Kyustendil, Radomir and Kovachevo village, municipality of Septemvri. They also received feedback and guidance on the planned campaigns, successes and difficulties in their planning and implementation.
The themes of the campaigns were environmental protection, ecology, Roma women empowerment, health, education, culture. Participants from different cities were able to share about the successes, difficulties and challenges in planning and implementing the campaigns, and also outlined their visions for the future of the clubs and club activities in 2024. During the meeting, the three video reports of LARGO Association on education, early marriage and Roma women empowerment were presented, as well as a video message by Marte Tyler Bye - advocacy expert at the KUN Centre for Equality and Diversity - Norway - a partner in the implementation of the project from the Norwegian side.
The meeting was realized within I have a dream project implemented by LARGO Association - Kyustendil in cooperation with KUN Centre for Equality and Diversity - Norway, with financial support provided by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the EEA Financial Mechanism and the Active Citizens Fund Operator Bulgaria www.activecitizensfund.bg. The main objective of the project "I Have a Dream" is to approbate, implement and disseminate innovative methods for empowering Roma women and girls through direct advocacy.
For more information and contact: Sasho Kovachev, LARGO Association,
Photos from the event:
The project "I have a dream" is implemented with the financial support of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the Active Citizens Fund of Bulgaria within the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area. All responsibility for the content of the document is borne by the Association Liberal alternative for Roma civil union - LARGO in partnership with KUN Center for Equality and Diversity - Norway and under no circumstances can it be assumed that this document reflects the official opinion of the Financial Mechanism of the European economic space and the Operator of Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria. www.activecitizensfund.bg .
I Have a Dream project is being implemented with financial support from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the EEA Financial Mechanism. The main goal of the project "I have a dream" is to test, implement and disseminate innovative methods for empowering Roma women and girls through direct advocacy.
Photo Voice exhibition of the Women's Advocacy Club at LARGO Association - Kyustendil
25 October 2023
The second national meeting of representatives of Roma women's clubs and planning and analysis of advocacy campaigns in 6 localities will be held in Bansko on 4 and 5 November 2023.
The meeting will be dedicated to review, analysis and discussion of planned advocacy campaigns in the areas of environment, Roma women empowerment, health, education. During the meeting the stages of their implementation and upcoming activities per city until the end of the project will be discussed in detail. The participants from the 6 clubs in the country from the towns of Dupnitsa, Rakitovo, Kovachevo village, Kyustendil, Radomir and Botevgrad will have the opportunity to exchange experiences on planning, communicating, building and implementing advocacy campaigns in each city, as well as to receive feedback and guidance on the planned campaigns, successes and difficulties in their planning and implementation.
The meeting was implemented within the framework of the project "I have a dream", implemented by LARGO Association LARGO – Kyustendil in cooperation with KUN Association - Norway, and with financial support provided by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the EEA Financial Mechanism. The main objective of "I Have a Dream" project is to approbate, implement and disseminate innovative methods for empowering Roma women and girls through direct advocacy.
For more information and contact: Sasho Kovachev, LARGO Association,
The project "I have a dream" is implemented with the financial support of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the Active Citizens Fund of Bulgaria within the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area. All responsibility for the content of the document is borne by the Association Liberal alternative for Roma civil union - LARGO in partnership with KUN Center for Equality and Diversity - Norway and under no circumstances can it be assumed that this document reflects the official opinion of the Financial Mechanism of the European economic space and the Operator of Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria. www.activecitizensfund.bg .
I Have a Dream project is being implemented with financial support from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the EEA Financial Mechanism. The main goal of the project "I have a dream" is to test, implement and disseminate innovative methods for empowering Roma women and girls through direct advocacy.
Photo Voice exhibition of the Women's Advocacy Club at LARGO Association - Kyustendil
15 October 2023
Today at 11.30 a.m. was opened Photo Voice exhibition of women's advocacy club of LARGO Association "Roma woman is ....". The exhibition was opened by Annie Kovacheva - Chairperson, Women's Club, Sasho Kovachev - Chairperson and Dr. Venelin Stoychev - Advocacy Expert at LARGO Association. The foyer of the Municipal Drama Theatre, Kyustendil gathered organizers, supporters, volunteers, staff from LARGO Association, representatives of local city institutions and guests from I Have a Dream project team.
They are young, educated, beautiful, part of the Roma community, do not fit into the stereotypes usually attributed to them, and are determined to work in their chosen professions and fields of activity, and are an example for the rest of the community. The biggest challenge is to fight themselves, to believe they can. The exhibition reveals the many faces of a successful Roma woman - entrepreneur, social worker, mother, singer, small business owner, hairdresser, student, pharmacist, and showed the positive role models of successful women and girls from the Roma community in Kyustendil in their fields of realization to show that Roma women are capable of achieving a lot and their achievements can be in different lights in different fields.
The exhibition is realized within the advocacy campaign of the women's club of the LARGO Association under the project "I have a dream", and can be viewed in the lobby of the Municipal Drama Theatre, Kyustendil, until the end of the month. The exhibition will be available until the end of October 2023.
Event poster:
The project "I have a dream" is implemented with the financial support of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the Active Citizens Fund of Bulgaria within the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area. All responsibility for the content of the document is borne by the Association Liberal alternative for Roma civil union - LARGO in partnership with KUN Center for Equality and Diversity - Norway and under no circumstances can it be assumed that this document reflects the official opinion of the Financial Mechanism of the European economic space and the Operator of Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria. www.activecitizensfund.bg .
I Have a Dream project is being implemented with financial support from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the EEA Financial Mechanism. The main goal of the project "I have a dream" is to test, implement and disseminate innovative methods for empowering Roma women and girls through direct advocacy.
28,7,2023
The team of the LARGO Association - Kyustendil is pleased to inform you about the progress of the implementation of the I have a dream project.
The work of the actively developed since March 2023 network of women's Roma clubs in the cities of Kyustendil, the village of Kovachevo /Septemvri Municipality/, Botevgrad, Dupnitsa, Rakitovo and Radomir. The purpose of the clubs is to support Roma women in building personal skills and developing self-confidence; visual advocacy and advocacy through art and culture; direct advocacy, as well as developing attitudes, will and skills for organizing and conducting direct advocacy campaigns. Participants discuss various topics related to problems in Roma neighborhoods /health care, infrastructure, education, development opportunities/, Roma customs, traditions, way of life, Roma cuisine, history of the Roma ethnicity, leisure activities, career development opportunities and improving the living status, the role of women in the Roma community, etc.
In parallel with the holding of the club meetings in the period March - June 2023, a series of personal soft skills trainings were held on various topics / teamwork skills, self-confidence and self-perception, combating stereotypes and prejudices, time management, opportunities for self-development/ , participation in activities and events to support the confidence, motivation and empowerment of Roma women and young girls to participate in solving important civic problems and issues of public importance.
On July 8 and 9, 2023, the participants in the clubs had the opportunity to meet and get to know each other live within the framework of the first national meeting of the representatives of the clubs, which was held in the village of Banya, commune. A reason. For two days, the women from the six settlements / Kyustendil, Kovachevo village, Botevgrad, Dupnitsa, Rakitovo and Radomir/ had the opportunity to exchange experiences, sharing the problems of different communities and looking for ways to solve them. Through role plays, discussions and working in groups, the women were able to create different advocacy strategies and plans for direct advocacy campaigns in individual localities.
As part of the informative information campaign, three video messages were produced in July and August 2023 - reports dedicated to early marriages, education and the role and dreams of Roma women.
“My biggest dream is to study medicine and study to become an anesthesiologist. I really enjoy learning about pain. I want to learn about pain and erase it from people's lives at least a little," says Zaprinka from the village of Kovachevo.
Many young people from the Roma ethnic group in our country are born and brought up in a passive position and resignation to fate, and their dreams often do not go further than to have health and understanding in the family. Education and personal development are very often a mirage, even more so - these women do not dare to dream.
In recent years, however, more and more young girls from the Roma ethnic group in our country go far beyond the established rules and norms in the community in which they live.
These women are united by the "I have a dream" project, which is implemented by the association LARGO Kyustendil in partnership with the association KUN Norway. Its main goal is to implement and spread new innovative methods for empowering Roma women and girls through personal skills and advocacy, to contribute to an environment that respects the Roma woman as a person, and women can stand up for their rights, interests and dreams. They have created their clubs as spaces to fulfill dreams without restrictions. More:
https://www.largo-dream.com/index.php/bg/news-bg
"I became a victim of early marriage. I got married at the age of 16," admits Vasi from Vrachesh. "My parents are not bad, but they still live with traditions. I had suitors coming, but I didn't want to marry someone I didn't love. I'm not sorry, I'm going to school, even though I'm small. I have now finished 10th grade, with a good grade. I go to work and home."
A global trend is to increasingly increase the age at which people start a family and become parents for the first time. The general trend of being born later also affects the Roma in Bulgaria.
Roma girls marry so early because of the strict morals in these communities regarding women - they must marry the first boy they have a relationship with. And then they are expected to give birth to children and take care of them at home.
The Penal Code provides for sanctions for adults who marry or cohabit with persons under the age of 16. However, the application of these sanctions is rather an exception.
Despite the positive trend, the problem of early marriages and births remains an important topic, because in this vicious circle patterns are reproduced that hinder the full development of entire generations. More on the topic:
https://www.largo-dream.com/index.php/bg/news-bg
"If you believe in yourself, you can do absolutely anything" - Fondanza, Kovachevo village
Roma in Bulgaria, however, still remain excluded from education, and part of the reasons for this are the sending of Roma children to special schools, discrimination, difficult access to education due to poverty.
Poverty and lack of education form a vicious circle. Due to limited awareness and lack of financial opportunities, Roma communities often have significantly worse health status.
Therefore, if young Roma have better access to education, they will be able to be stronger advocates for their community in the future. More on the topic:
https://www.largo-dream.com/index.php/bg/news-bg
The project "I have a dream" is implemented with the financial support of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the Active Citizens Fund of Bulgaria within the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area. All responsibility for the content of the document is borne by the Association Liberal alternative for Roma civil union - LARGO in partnership with KUN Center for Equality and Diversity - Norway and under no circumstances can it be assumed that this document reflects the official opinion of the Financial Mechanism of the European economic space and the Operator of Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria. www.activecitizensfund.bg .
3,7,2023
July 8-9, 2023, Seven Seasons Hotel, Banya village, Razlog municipality
Association LARGO organizes a National meeting of representatives of Roma women's clubs under project project ACF 709 I have a dream which will take place on July 8 and 9, 2023, Saturday and Sunday, at the Seven Seasons Hotel, Banya village, Razlog municipality.
The meeting will be dedicated to the participants from the 6 clubs in the country from the cities of Dupnitsa, Rakitovo, Septemvri, Kyustendil, Radomir and Botevgrad getting to know each other, exchanging experience regarding construction and functioning, and
the implemented activity of the network of women's clubs, feedback from the completed trainings; review, analysis and discussion of the clubs' activities, their successes and difficulties.
We will discuss and plan together the next specific remaining activities of the "I have a dream" project until the end of its implementation.
Agenda
July 8, 2023, Saturday
10.00-10.30 – Arrival, registration
10.30-11.30 - Opening of the meeting.
11.30-12.00 – coffee break
12.00 -13.30 - Building a network of women's Roma clubs and trainings - feedback from the trainings; review, analysis and discussion of the implemented activities of the clubs /formation, format, club functioning, topics, members, difficulties, challenges, successes, problems/.
13.30-14.30 – Lunch break
14.30 -15.30 - What has been done so far on the project. Review, discussion, specification and planning of further specific remaining project activities until the end of its implementation. Development of the clubs after the completion of the project.
15.30 - 16.00 - coffee break
16.00 - 17.00 - Video message from the KUN Association, Norway on the topic "Visual Advocacy" - methods, approaches and experience of the partner. Discussion and brainstorming for ideas to implement in the work of the clubs. Advocacy case work.
17.00 - 19.00 – free time
19.00 - 20.30 - dinner
July 9, 2023, Sunday
Breakfast
09.30 - 11.30 – Overview, discussion, clarification and planning of advocacy campaigns. Work in small groups to discuss ideas. Advocacy Implementation Plans - Needs, Resources, Campaign for awareness. Summary and conclusion.
12.00 - catering and departure
The project "I have a dream" is implemented with the financial support of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the Active Citizens Fund of Bulgaria within the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area. All responsibility for the content of the document is borne by the Association Liberal alternative for Roma civil union - LARGO in partnership with KUN Center for Equality and Diversity - Norway and under no circumstances can it be assumed that this document reflects the official opinion of the Financial Mechanism of the European economic space and the Operator of Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria. www.activecitizensfund.bg .
I HAVE A DREAM
What is your first association when you hear "early marriages", "children give birth to children", "dropping out of school", "illiteracy"? Yes, the Gypsies. Even behind the mask of political correctness to call them "Roma", many people believe that Roma women are guilty for this situation because they "give birth to many children", "get married at an early age" and „they are lazy".
However, the problem is that Roma girls and women spin in an unending circle of socialization, which does not respect them as individuals, as subjects of life plans and human will. Many Roma girls and women are double discriminated against and society remains deaf to their problems, hopes and dreams.
For that "LARGO" Association - Kyustendil begins the implementation of the project "I Have a Dream". The project will implement new methods for empowering Roma women and girls through direct advocacy. "I Have a Dream" is applied through the partnership of the Norwegian advocacy organization KUN, which has tremendous experience in empowering vulnerable social groups and protecting the rights of women and minorities.
Do you want to understand what means "direct participation", what means "visual advocacy", and how can be torn up the unending circle of poverty-illiteracy-unemployment-poverty?
Welcome to the introductory press conference of the project "I Have a Dream", which will be implemented on Monday, October 25, at 10:30 a.m. in the Bulgarian Telegraphic Agency’s press club in Kyustendil, “Targovsta Street“, No 11.
For additional information, please don’t hesitate to contact - Venelin Stoychev vie cell phone: 0887-230-230 or email:
The project "I have a dream" is implemented with the financial support of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway under the Active Citizens Fund of Bulgaria within the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area.
