Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 24 March 2022
51. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the key supports his Department provides to the Traveller and Roma community in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15308/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe National Traveller and Roma Inclusion Strategy (NTRIS) provides a framework for action on Traveller and Roma issues. It represents a whole of Government approach and brings Government Departments and Agencies together with representatives of Traveller and Roma communities to focus on key issues in a structured. I chair the NTRIS Steering Committee.
My Department has an important funding role and provides funding to support a range of activities linked to NTRIS actions and to provide core funding to a number of Traveller and Roma organisations.
I secured a budget of €5.659m for 2022, and this funding will be used to provide core funding to a number of Traveller and Roma Organisations. The funding will also be used to support a number of important initiatives and projects, for example, employment projects, education projects, a number of social inclusion and cultural projects, mediation and counselling services and others.
The Covid19 pandemic has highlighted the specific nature and extent of the needs of the Roma and Traveller communities and I have secured an additional €880,000 in Dormant Account Funds which will be used to support a number of specific projects to support the communities in 2022.
Key projects funded
- School attendance is a specific challenge for some members of the Traveller and Roma communities. My Department is providing funding for a Pilot Programme to target attendance, participation and retention/school completion in specific Traveller and Roma Communities. The pilot teams work together with parents, children and young people, schools, Traveller and Roma communities and service providers to remove the barriers impacting on Traveller and Roma children’s attendance, participation and retention in education. The pilots are taking place in Galway, Wexford, Dublin and Cork.
- Employment is also an ongoing challenge in the Traveller and Roma community. My Department funds the Special Initiative for Travellers (SIT) to provide support for practical approaches to redressing the imbalance in Traveller under-employment, to support Travellers already engaged in the Traveller economy and provide other supports, including training, to address the needs of Travellers. The SIT funding includes Support Workers and assistance for employment and enterprise development. There are currently SITs in seven locations around Ireland.
- My Department funds both the Traveller Mediation Service and the Traveller Counselling Service. One of Traveller Mediation Service’s unique attributes is that it employs Travellers as mediators who have the necessary understanding of Traveller culture and who inspire confidence in Travellers to avail of the service.
- My Department also funds the National Traveller Women’s Forum which is working to empower Traveller Women. Additional funding was provided for community projects that support and promote leadership roles for Traveller and Roma Women.
- My Department has worked to advance projects that increase the visibility of Traveller culture and heritage. It has provided funding for Traveller Pride Week to empower national, regional and local organisations to celebrate Traveller and Roma culture and diversity.
- My Department is also progressing a project with the National Museum of Ireland to develop an online portal to the Traveller Culture collections. This programme will see the creation of an online portal of objects, archives, photography, recordings and other collections held in the National Cultural Institutions and National Folklore Archive illustrative of or, pertaining to Traveller culture and history.
The Programme for Government commits to a review of the Strategy and I will work with stakeholders to reviewing what has been achieved, and to developing new approaches, as necessary, with a particular focus on implementation and measurement. Proposals for an evaluation of the processes for implementation of three equality strategies - the Migrant Integration Strategy, the National Strategy for Women and Girls and NTRIS, which all concluded last year, have been sought. It is expected that the contract will be signed very shortly with work commencing in March and concluding in quarter three this year.
The reason for proceeding with an evaluation process that spans a number of equality strategies is to place the focus on implementation and to identify potential good practice in some areas that can be transferred to others. The objectives of our equality strategies remain largely relevant and the key challenge is to ensure better delivery. The issue of intersectionality also needs to be addressed in a more coherent manner.
The current NTRIS Steering Committee is remaining in operation during the Review process and our next meeting is scheduled for the end of March. Work will continue on implementing NTRIS’s actions, many of which remain highly relevant.
The Strategy Committee’s role will also be pivotal in developing the consultation process and the content for the successor strategy. The advice provided by Traveller and Roma organisations will directly shape the scope and focus of the next strategy.
