The Municipality of Plovdiv starts the implementation of the project "All Together - for Better Education and Health" as part of the ZOV Programme, financed by the Bulgarian-Swiss Cooperation Programme.

The project aims to provide better access to education and healthcare in order to foster the integration of Roma and other vulnerable groups, living in Stolipinovo district of Plovdiv, which is the largest Roma neighborhood in Europe and the adjacent town of Kuklen.

The project activities are mainly focused on the social integration of Roma and other vulnerable groups through better access to education and healthcare.

The project envisions the construction of new extension of Iztok Healthcare Center with five medical offices, as well as the establishment of Educational Center in the shared schoolyard of the “Nayden Gerov” and “Kiril Nektariev” primary schools in Stolipinovo district. Various extracurricular activities, aiming to decrease the number of minority students dropping out of schools, will be held in the new building of Stolipinovo Educational Center.

The newly constructed medical offices at the Iztok Healthcare Center will be provided with modern diagnostic equipment and physicians specialized in general medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology will work there with the target groups.

The project will also finance courtyard’s infrastructure improvement activities and construction of two playgrounds in the area of "Lilia" Kindergarten in Stolipinovo.

Three healthcare and three educational mediators will work to support the process of integration of Roma people in Stolipinovo and Kuklen through improved access to education and healthcare services.

Project partners of the Municipality of Plovdiv in the implementation of the project are two non-profit organizations – Indi Roma 1997 Social Foundation and Plovdiv 2019 Municipal Foundation.

The total amount of the project is 1, 077, 495 leva, of which 85 % is the Swiss co-financing. Municipality of Plovdiv will cofinance the project with 43,633 leva, which is 10% of the total infrastructure costs.

The project is planned to be completed by the end of April 2019.

The signing of the agreement had been preceded by extensive communication between the representatives of Municipality of Plovdiv, Bulgarian-Swiss Cooperation Program and the Government of Switzerland. In July 2016, President of the National Council of Switzerland Ms. Christa Markwalder visited the main sites of the project in the district of Stolipinovo.

As of today, Nursery No. 6 in Druzhba 3 neighbourhood in Ruse will have 25 new charges organized in two newly formed nursery groups. The premises for this new addition are situated on the second floor of the refurbished former “Medics’ Home – Social Care for Children” facility, within the frame of ZOV (Health and Education for All) project implemented with the financial support of the Bulgarian-Swiss Cooperation Programme.

The two groups have capacity for 32 children and new children are being enrolled. The new premises will provide care for the very young children of the families living in Druzhba 3 neighbourhood and in another two neighbourhoods situated nearby. Four nurses, four child attendants and one teacher will take care of the children.

Mayor Plamen Stoilov said: “I am happy that on this day I can see parents who will be given the best conditions for the upbringing of their children in fully refurbished premises which the local government of Ruse will continue to organize.” Mr. Stoilov cut the Ribbon at the official opening of the renovated building jointly with deputy-mayor and project manager Daniela Shilkova and Veronika Trifonova, director of Nursery No. 6. The Holy Water ritual for good health and longevity was served in the spirit of tradition.

The funds invested in building and installation works amount at 192 389 BGN, of which 10% are co-funding from Ruse Municipality. Nearly 60 000 BGN have been provided under the project for furnishing and equipment, which were supplemented with 10 000 BGN for materials and current repairs, provided by the local government.

The event took place within the Open Doors initiative as part of ZOV publicity and awareness campaign – “Integrated approach of the local government of Ruse for integration of Roma and other vulnerable groups living in the municipal territories of the District of Ruse.”

Presentations were made of the goals and activities implemented in the three main directions of the project: education, healthcare and cultural identity. The achievements so far were presented as follows: consulting for parents of children in risk of dropping out from school, screening tests for children from the first to fourth school grades conducted in four schools in Ruse Municipality and in another three schools located in other municipalities covered by the project: Ivanovo, Vetovo and Borovo.

The partner organizations of Ruse local government worked actively on-site in campaigns for prevention of baby trafficking and for holding of trainings for teachers and medical specialists to work in multicultural community. Forthcoming is a stage-by-stage opening of medical consulting rooms for medical prevention and gynaecological examinations in the territory of Ruse Municipality and in the neighbouring municipalities of Ivanovo, Vetovo and Borovo.

In October, a total of 30 residents from Malko Tarnovo and village Zvezdets were trained in first-aid providing: they were trained how to stop running blood, how to react in situations of emergency and how to recognize the symptoms of stroke and heart attack. Similar courses were organized for the residents of Burgas and Sredets. Over 100 participants have already been trained under the programme.

The contests involving the participation of 62 trainees – parents and children – were met with great interest. The contests simulated real-life incidents in which the participants, organized in five-member teams, demonstrated their newly-gained knowledge on first-aid providing.
In the end of November, similar contests will be organized for the residents of Pobeda neighbourhood in Burgas.

The trainings form part of the “Integrated project for social inclusion of Roma and other vulnerable groups” implemented by the local government of Burgas within the framework of ZOV (Health and Education for All) Programme.
 

66 teachers from three schools in Burgas, Sredets and Malko Tarnovo, and four educational mediators from “District Roma Union” Foundation were trained for working with children studying in multicultural educational environment.

The two-day training was conducted by experienced specialists from Burgas Free University and passed in two modules: “Teaching art to children studying in multicultural educational environment” and “Working in multicultural environment with children of special educational needs and children with retarded psychological development”. 

One of the main objectives of the project, which is implemented in Burgas under ZOV (Health and Education for All) Programme, is the full inclusion of Roma children in the educational system. The attracting and keeping of Roma children in school calls for individual approach in each case; extra help will be provided for those pupils who lack behind with their studies.

The work with the children’s parents was another highlight of the action. Interaction was being sought along the line “parents – children – kindergarten – school.” Another objective of the project was to explain that dropping out from school is a significant issue. The discussions paid attention to the management of anger. New approaches for work with bilingual children were presented, aimed at better mastering of the Bulgarian language.

Similar training for teachers and educational mediators will be organized, again, in the next year. The programme foresees two single-day trainings with “demonstration” lessons to be delivered by the teachers included in the project.

The team of Association “Roma Academy for Culture and Education” collects artefacts and works of art created by Roma artists and craftsmen. The collected items will be arranged in a small exhibition to be displayed in the future Educational Centre in the Roma neighbourhood Nadezhda in Sliven.

The first items have already been purchased from Roma craftsmen – tinsmiths, ironsmiths, carpet weavers and basket makers, as well as paintings from Roma artists and from artists developing the Roma theme.

Donations are accepted from everyone who wants to contribute to the collection. The first contributions have already been made.