Avoiding the depedency trap; the roma human development report, 2002

The Report surveys five countries - Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia and finds that by such measures as literacy, infant moretality and basic nutrition, most of those country's four to five million Roma endure conditions closer to those of sub-Saharan Africa than Europe. For example, nearly half the Roma surveyed are unemployed and close to one person in six is "constantly starving." Only six in every 10 households have running water, while fewer than half have toilets in their homes. Finally, only a third of Roma serveyed completed primary school, six per cent completed secondary school and only one per cent attended college. The objective of the Report is to oncourage debate and the exchange of information on this issue, to encourage collaboration between different organizations where possible and to bring about real change in human development opportunities for marginalized communities, of which Roma are the most numerous, primarly by expanding the analysis from the focus on human rights alone to the broader challenge of human development. Progress on minority issues, especially the Roma, is a key criterion for European Union memership, making improving the situation of the Roma a priority for these five countries now, given taht they are all EU candidates.