Using EU Structural Funds for early
childhood education and care
with focus on marginalised Roma
communities
in the 2014-2020 period
Presentation by
Joanna Kostka
Why Invest in
Quality Early Childhood Education and Care?
• Ending the intergenerational transmission of
poverty
• A return on investment/ preventive action
• Brain Development / well being of children
• Preparation of school (preventing early school
leaving) + enhances chances to succeed in life
• Children’s rights and social responsibility
Access to ECEC
UNDP-WB Roma Survey 2011, UNICEF database for school year 2010/11 (children aged 3-6)
Access to Quality
Quality: a degree of excellence
Educational Reforms
- Human resources
- Diversity
- Teacher – student
- Desegregation
interaction
- Teacher – parents
interaction
- Curriculum
- Health / well being
- Equipment
- Facilities
- Cultural sensitivity
- Awareness
- BUDGETS
- PARTNERSHIP
EU Regulation for 2014-2020 funding period
• Integrated use of funds
• Thematic ex-ante conditionality
(Annex IV(9) and IV(10))
Education (early school leaving)
b) Social-inclusion (poverty elevation and Roma inclusion)
• General ex-ante conditionality (Article 5.1.c and 87.3 and Annex IV(1))
a) Anti-discrimination
• ESF - equal access to quality early childhood education (Article
a)
3.1.b.1, 3.1.c.ii)
• Identification + targeting of the most disadvantaged micro
regions (Article 14.c and Annex IV)
• Promoting equal opportunity + capacity building of partners
Recommendations
EU Level
To strengthen ex-ante conditionality
Emphasize ECEC as a horizontal priority
Why?
• Enforce the realization that ECEC is one of the most
crucial factors for breaking the intergenerational
transmission of poverty
• Enforce the realization that ECEC has high return on
investment
• Prevent cuts in ECEC budget due to economic crisis
• Enhance potential synergies between EU funding
and other tools (e.g. legislation, state budget)
Specific Recommendations – EU Level
Thematic Ex-ante conditionality for education
(Early School Leaving)
Should include references to :
• Special needs of disadvantaged groups
• Access to quality ECEC (comprehensive approach)
• Desegregation and promotion of active anti-segregation
initiatives (indirect, culturally bias barriers)
• Creation of diverse teaching staff and teaching
methodologies
Recommendation for EU level
Common Strategic Framework - ERDF
Explicit reference should be made on early childhood
development also in key actions for ERDF
• support for investment in early childhood development,
education and training infrastructure
• fostering non-segregated pre-school education
Recommendations
National Programming Documents
a) Linking SF to mainstream educational strategies
b) ECEC horizontal priority
c) Long term strategies/provisions – moving away
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
from pilot project
Targeting of deprived micro-region and urban centers
Incentives for local actors to comply with conditionality
(partnership – cooperative culture)
Technical assistance (ex-ante assessments/guidance in
implementation)
ECEC Infrastructure (desegregation)
Revision of the national strategies (defining budgets)
Implementation phase
AGS’ experiences in Slovakia, Hungary and Romania
a. SUSTAINABLILTY
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
Comprehensive ECEC services (community based
services/ health services/curriculum/equality standards)
Infrastructure/ elimination of capacity issues/ uneven
distribution
De-segregation (strategic-preventive action)
Training and labor insertion (human resources)
Development of teaching materials (ex. national
language as second language)
Technical assistance to project implementers/ improved
management of SF (advanced payments,
reimbursements)
Thank you very much for your
attention
Joanna Kostka