Kaolinovo
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Kaolinovo Municipality is located in North-Eastpart of Bulgaria and is one of the constituent municipalities of Shumen District. There are 16 settlements in the municipality of Kaolinovo, whose population numbers 21.379 people (Bulgarian, Turkish and Roma ethnic groups). The active population in Kaolinovo Municipality represents 48.00% of the total population in the region, Kaolinovo being one of the municipalities with very high unemployment rate – 54,48%. Officially, they are 1.675 Roma persons in the city, the settlements with significant Roma population being Todor Ikonomovo village (where live 49% of all Roma from Kaolinovo municipality), Branichevo (with 15%), Lyatno (with 14%), Dolina (with 10 %) and Takach (with 7%).
The main problems of the community are:
- - high unemployment rate
- - low quality of education
- - significant number of people without health insurance (about 90% of Roma community)
- - road infrastructure in the villages
The ROMACT Process
Kaolinovo municipality joined the ROMACT program in April 2017 with the signature of the letter of agreement. Shortly after, the Community Action Group (CAG), was created.
In November 2017, the Municipal Taskforce for Roma Inclusion was created.
The long-term priorities identified by the Community Action Group are:
| Identified problems |
|---|
| Work with families for engaging them in school activities |
| Work with students for raising their motivation for learning |
| Qualify teachers to work in multicultural environment – trainings, seminars, exchange of experience etc. |
| Implement informational campaigns among the Roma community regarding the use of health care insurance |
| Perform regular medical screenings for the persons with no health security |
| Take measures to improve the work of the urgent medical assistance units |
| Organize activities focused on legalization / solving the problem with the unlawfully built constructions |
| Securing appropriate qualification courses / suitable professions |
| Attracting investors to create jobs |
| Improve the learning abilities (with focus on the Bulgarian language) through additional informal in-class and out-of-class forms |
The Municipality Action Plan for Roma Inclusion was updated based on needs identified by the CAG and adopted by the Local Council on 23 May 2018.
Trainings provided by ROMACT experts :
Community Action Groups (CAG):
* Training on group consolidation;
* Communication as a tool of advocacy;
* Addressing drug delivery and use in the Roma neighbourhoods;
* Participation in the process of municipal budget planning;
* Planning, implementation and monitoring of a municipal project for social inclusion;
* NGO establishment and management;
* Opportunities and Interaction with Local Authorities.
Local Authorities (LA):
* Training for municipality representatives;
* Approaches for working with Roma communities;
* Elaboration of quality projects for social inclusion within the Operational Programmes;
* Development and implementation of policies targeting Roma community;
* Monitoring and evaluation process of MAPRI;
* Advocacy with Local Authorities for addressing social exclusion and marginalization;
* Participation in a public consultation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan of Bulgaria.
LA and CAG :
* Monitoring and evaluation process of the Municipal Action Plan for Roma Integration (MAPRI).
Taskforce :
* Monitoring&Evaluation as Processes contributing to the Effectiveness and Efficiency of Public Policies;
* Reinforcing the local partnerships for more effective practical implementation of children's rights and the protection of children at risk.
The following measures were implemented :
* Construction of a public fountain in Takach village (CAG and Local authorities cooperative work)
* Provision of notebooks and educational materials to 30 Roma children from disadvantaged families
* Agreement between the CAG - Kaolinovo and Labor Bureau to increase level of knowledge about the services and opportunities offered by the Bureau
* Recruitment of an educational mediator in Kaolinovo Highschool