ROMA INFLUENCERS NETWORK - BREAKING THE VICIOUS CIRCLE OF EARLY MARRIAGES AND EARLY BIRTHS IN ROMA COMMUNITIES

The project “Roma Influencers Network – Breaking the Circle of Early Marriages and Early Motherhood in Roma Communities” is a European initiative dedicated to preventing early marriages and early motherhood among Roma girls, phenomena that severely limit their access to education, health, and social participation. The intervention starts from the reality that such practices persist in certain vulnerable communities, generating school dropout, economic dependency, increased health risks, and the perpetuation of poverty from one generation to the next. The project promotes an innovative approach centered on the direct involvement of Roma women and girls as agents of change and on mobilizing community leaders to transform the social norms that sustain these practices.

Funded through the Erasmus+ Programme, KA220-ADU Cooperation Partnerships in Adult Education, the project is implemented over 24 months starting in November 2024 by an international consortium coordinated by Klimaka, Roma Day Center in Greece, together with partners from Ireland, Portugal, Italy, and Romania, including SASTIPEN. The partnership facilitates the exchange of good practices and the development of solutions adapted to national contexts.

Main activities include national research on the scale of the phenomenon, training programs for Roma women and girls, the creation of a transnational network of Roma Influencers, community awareness campaigns, and the development of educational and media materials. The training program builds skills in leadership, communication, reproductive health, and vocational orientation so that participants can become positive role models in their communities.

SASTIPEN contributes to implementation in Romania through research, the organization of training sessions, community mobilization, and the dissemination of results. In the long term, the project seeks to change attitudes toward early marriages, increase the participation of Roma girls in education, and strengthen the role of Roma women as community leaders, thereby contributing to the promotion of children’s and women’s rights and to the development of more inclusive and equitable communities.