OSCE Mission to Serbia supports school enrollment as part of the Gazela settlement relocation plan
BELGRADE, 1 October 2008 - Sixty five ethnic Roma pupils from the Gazela settlement, recently enrolled for primary school, received backpacks, textbooks, other school supplies and winter clothes at an event organized by the OSCE Mission and Belgrade city authorities today.
The Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, Ambassador Hans Ola Urstad, and Darko Bozicu, a member of the Belgrade City Council, took part in the event. The 20,000 euro donation is part of the OSCE Mission's Roma Assistance Programme, supported by the Norwegian Embassy. The OSCE Mission has also arranged for Romani-speaking teacher assistants to help the children make the transition to regular school attendance.
"The OSCE Mission welcomes the efforts of the City of Belgrade to help relocate the Roma settlement from under the Gazela bridge, and offer their children education opportunities," said Ambassador Urstad.
He added that if properly implemented the relocation plan would benefit the families and be a key activity in Serbia's Presidency of the Decade for Roma Inclusion (July 2008 - June 2009).
The City of Belgrade is working to relocate 133 families living in the Gazela settlement under a Belgrade highway bridge and provide access to adequate education opportunities for Roma children.
"The relocation of the Gazela settlement is one of the priorities for the City Government. Our support for this plan should be seen as part of our commitment to improve the social and economic inclusion of the Roma community in Belgrade," said Darko Bozicu.
The school enrollment of the Roma children was made possible through an initiative of the Belgrade City Government's Co-ordination Centre for Roma Inclusion. It was preceded by an initiative which ended in September and which provided four months of pre-school classes for the children. This initiative was also supported by the OSCE Mission, and funded by the Spanish Government and the European Commission.