Invitation for the Romanian Country Launch event

Launching Conference of “A Good Start” project – Romania

Launching Conference of “A Good Start” project – Romania


Date: 11th of November 2011,
1 PM and 4 PM
Venue: Hotel Ramada
Address: Oradea, Calea Aradului 9.

It is a register only event, please make sure you send your registree mail to Iustina Varga – administrativ@ruhama.ro, mobile: +40-735-852-539 or phone: +40-259-456-180. Deadline for submitting registration is 16:00 on the 9th November 2010.

 Launching Conference of “A Good Start” project – Romania

The most important goal of the Roma Education Fund (REF) is to decrease the gap in educational outcomes between Roma and non-Roma through projects, research and educational policy measures which support the quality education of the Roma and the desegregation of the educational system. 2010 is the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion. It is, among others, in light of this circumstance that the European Union supports the implementation of “A Good Start” programme which targets the development of children between 0 and 6 years of age. All this, financed from a 2 million EUR budget, will be implemented in 22 months, by means of pilot projects that adapt to local conditions and in four countries – Slovakia, Romania, Macedonia and Hungary, in a total of 16 settlements. Our goal is to achieve, by the end of the programme, an efficient and successful involvement and support of altogether more than 4,000 small children and their families in the four countries.

In Romania, at the start of the school-year, in two settlements – Bihor County, Telechiu Village and Dolj County, Craiova City, Mofleni neighborhood – individual programme elements have started/are being launched. Support provided to early childhood development and to making children attend kindergartens, building on the community and families, in cooperation with the families, mothers, kindergartens and professional organisations, will be implemented in the interest of the successful elementary school education in the future.

In the project location from Bihor County, Telechiu Village, Ruhama Foundation together with the local partners Ţeţchea Town Hall and Ţeţchea Local School is creating and piloting inclusion programs in early childhood development (ECD) for children of 0-3 years and 3-6 years in a small Roma community in this rural area. The local partners, with support from ISSA, are providing trainings in ECD to local specialist and for Parents School trainers. The main activities implemented in Telechiu are: Parents School non-formal education program for the Roma parents, Early Childhood Education and Care program for Roma children of 0-3 years, new kindergarten class of 3-6 years children within the Community Centre, Life skills education program for Roma children, support for Roma children and their families to ensure a successful transition to primary schools.
As regarding the implementation of the project in Dolj County, Craiova City, Mofleni neighborhood, Romani CRISS together with the local partners TRUST Association, Dolj School Inspectorate, CJARE, Municipality of Craiova, University of Craiova, School no. 13 and Mofleni Kindergarten is developing parental education programs, intercultural curricula and need-based material support activities for 3-6 years old children, opening a community centre for parents and children from 0 to 3 years old, awareness raising campaign, training for teachers and care staff and work with local authorities.
Considering the active role and the strategic vision of your institution regarding the Roma issues but
also the involvement in programs addressed to the Roma minority, we invite to participate at the
launching event of the project A Good Start, which will take place on the 11th of November 2011,
between 1 PM and 4 PM, at Hotel Ramada, Oradea, Calea Aradului 9.

For those interested, you are invited also to take part at the next day, 12th November, side visit to Telechiu village, between 9.15 AM and 12 AM.

We cordially invite you to the opening ceremony and on the day after that to the site visits.

The event will be open for media. The conference will have presentations in English and Romanian with translation.
Registration will be held until 4 PM on 9 November 2010 at the address: Iustina Varga administrativ@ruhama.ro, mobile: +40-735-852-539 or phone: +40-259-456-180.