PEERYOUTH.EU

All citizens, including children, have the right to actively express their opinion and take part in decisions regarding all aspects of their lives. For children this right is stated in Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The EU Roma integration strategy (EU Commission 2011) seeks to tackle the structures and systems which marginalise and exclude Roma communities from social, economic and political integration. Although progress has been made in some countries, Roma children and youth are excluded from effective participation, due not only to their age, but to a major part because of their economic status, social exclusion and ethnic prejudices. In countries across the European Union Roma children are subject to many social disadvantages that reduce their chances to influence processes, decisions and activities that affect them.