19/10/2016
The FSG programme Calí (Roma woman) was publicly launched last October 19th at the FSG´s headquearters in Madrid by FSG General Director, Isidro Rodriguez. In the event also participated representatives of the
programme´s funding entities: Carmen Casero, Director General Self-Employment, Social Economy and Social Responsibility of the Ministry of Employment and Social Security (ESF Managing Authority); Immaculada Lasala, Deputy General Secretary of the Directorate General of Family Services and Children of the Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality and Marc Simon, Director of the Social Area of the Foundation La Caixa Bank.
A team of 30 women, 25 of them Roma, are the professionals chosen to develop the programme in 28 cities across Spain. Calí is a programme addressing Roma women with very low employability and particularly vulnerable situations. The main objectives are to create equal opportunities and access to the labour market as means for social inclusion; to promote gender equality between women and men, breaking cultural barriers, incorporating conciliation issues, and raising awareness on gender violence, supporting victims; and to promote equal treatment, combating all forms of discrimination and assisting victims
Calí is a programme that seeks to empower Roma women, to guarantee the exercise and defense of their rights. A programme that seeks ultimately full citizenship.
Calí is an innovative programme in almost all aspects. One of the main innovations is its holistic approach, addressing the needs of Roma women from a multidimensional perspective (personal, social, labor) aiming to promote equality (equal opportunities, gender equality and equal treatment).
It is innovative because of the profile of the participant Roma women: Roma women, mostly, with an extremely vulnerable profile and highly disadvantaged socio-labour conditions. It is conceived to be an ambitious and powerful programme, designed to have a strong impact, promoting social change within the Roma community: it has a medium-term perspective, until 2019. It is funded, among other sources, by the European Social Fund. It has a strong regional presence (it is developed in 28 Spanish cities). It is carried out by 30 women professionals, 25 of whom are Roma. It means a new step foward in the gender equality that FSG is promoting.
The programme works directly with Roma women (is expected to reach more than 2,400 women until 2019), but not only with them. Achieving equality requires incorporating, on the one hand, the Roma men and the Roma community as a whole, raising awareness on issues of gender equality and conciliation. And it also requires adding allies out of the Roma community. For this purpose, the programme plans to work closely with public authorities, social services, employment services, gender institutions and assistance services to victims of domestic violence, prosecutors offices of hate crimes and discrimination, as well as other agents or specialized entities.
The Calí programme combines individual and group activities with Roma women (training, awareness...) and advocacy actions, to enable greater programme impact to change the social image that general society has of the Roma community.
Calí is a new FSG programme developed under the ESF Operational Programme of Social Inclusion and Social Economy (POISES) together with other national programmes dedicated both to promoting access of Roma to the labour market (Acceder programme, since 2000) and to promoting the academic success of Roma students (Promociona programme, since 2009).
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