Local development (Local Development, Poverty Reduction and Enhanced Roma Inclusion Programme)

The program will actively contribute to strengthening social and economic cohesion at national and local level in Romania by supporting measures aimed at:

  • improving Roma inclusion and empowerment
  • intensifying the use of social services (education, health) by disadvantaged groups
  • inclusive education for children and young people at risk
  • reducing early school leaving
  • developing the knowledge of the central and local administration to implement the principles of good governance and the recommendations formulated by the European Court of Human Rights for Romania.

Total amount of funding available for the programme

The value of the program is EUR 86,941,176 (EUR 73,900,000 EEA and Norwegian grants and EUR 13,041,176 co-financed by the national budget)

Programme management

The program is managed by the Romanian Social Development Fund, as  Programme Operator, in partnership with the Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities (SC). The Council of Europe has the role of an International Partner Organization.

Within the programme will be implemented projects selected within the 7 calls launched by the Programme Operator and 3 predefined projects.

Calls for projects

Poverty reduction (restricted call)

The call for proposals aims to implement the national and local poverty alleviation measures in order to ensure the capitalization / development of the results of projects implemented under the Poverty Reduction Program (RO25), financed under the Norwegian Grants 2009-2014.

Inclusive education for children and youth at risk

The call for proposals aims to increase the degree of social inclusion of children and young people in Romania. The financed projects  will help to ensure their access to a quality education, fair and inclusive, in relation to their needs. The projects are implemented at regional or national level and are addressed to children and young people at risk of dropping out of school / early school leaving and those with special educational needs (SEN).

Roma inclusion 

The call for proposals aims to promote social inclusion, combat discrimination and racism, promote intercultural exchange and strengthen the capacity to support development in communities with a high percentage of ethnic Roma.Local development 
The call for porposals aims to implement measures to prevent and combat poverty and social exclusion and to increase the access of disadvantaged groups to social services, as well as to increase the level of satisfaction of these groups regarding the quality of the services.

Human rights 

The call for projects aims to improve the implementation of the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg (ECHR) and the country recommendations issued by other Council of Europe bodies.

Access to funds (small grants scheme) 

The small grant scheme will  increase the capacity of local authorities to obtain funding for implementing the measures foreseen in local development strategies and plans, targeting local development and poverty reduction in poor, isolated, marginalized communities.

Priority interventions (small grants scheme) 

The general objective of the call is to contribute to the improvement of living and educational conditions in disadvantaged communities with a high percentage of Roma population, by funding community level projects (developed within a single ATU) that address specific priority needs identified in a participatory way

Predefined projects

Sustainable social and education integration through sport activities (4,373,581  EUR)

The project is implemented by the National University of Physical Education and Sports (UNEFS) Bucharest, in partnership with the Norwegian School of Sports Sciences (NSSS).
The objective is to reduce early school leaving by involving children and young people at risk in sports activities.

Improving access and quality of services to citizens (3,277,088 EUR)

The project is implemented by the Association of Romanian Municipalities (ACoR), in partnership with the Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities (KS) and the Association of Romanian Municipalities (AMR).
The objctive is to strengthen the capacity of local authorities by increasing accountability and transparency and raising awareness of incompatibility and conflict of interest.

Capacity building in the field of public governance (3,020,000 EUR)

The project will be implemented by the General Secretariat of the Government, in partnership with the Ministry of Justice, the Romanian Digitization Authority and the OECD.
A detailed assessment of the Romanian central public administration will be carried out, followed by capacity building measures in a sustainable manner. 

 

The dedicated website of the Programme, managed by the Programme Operator, is available here.