14.01.2021
A tangible leap of Roma youth who have graduated from school
Twice as many Roma children finish school, the number of those with secondary and higher education increases. These are the main conclusions of a sociological survey on the education and realization of the Roma community in the last ten years. According to Minister of Education Krasimir Valchev, Roma children are already dropping out of school at a later stage.
In 2019, 43% of Roma have primary education against 36% in 2011. The percentage of those with secondary education has also increased from 13 to 22. And graduates are already 2.6% against 0.4 ten years ago. For 21-25 year olds, this percentage even jumps to 5.4. This is according to a study by Global Metrics, commissioned by the Trust for Social Alternative.
In 10 years, the share of Roma children attending school has increased in all age groups - 95% of children between the ages of 7 and 10 go to school.
The share of Roma graduates is twice as high among those who have attended kindergarten or attending kindergarten increases their chances of completing higher education by about 35 percent.
Employment among Roma attending kindergarten is 40% higher, and their income is 30% higher than the income of those who have not attended kindergarten.
The last decade has seen a decline in the unemployment rate and an increase in the employment rate among the Roma community. Employment among Roma over the age of 15 increased from 19% in 2011 to 45% in 2019.
According to the Minister of Education Krassimir Valchev, there is a process of modernization of the Roma community, more Roma study and work. For the three years since the operation of the coverage mechanism, the coverage of Roma children in school has increased by an average of 2.5 percent. There is already a later dropout from our education system.
According to the Minister of Labor and Social Policy Denitsa Sacheva, the share of Roma returned to school is increasing, to 40,000 children. Unfortunately, at the moment, the Covid crisis has "paused" the process of including Roma children.
