101608 Roma in an Expanding Europe: Challenges for the Future by James D. Wolfensohn President The World Bank Budapest, Hungary, July 1, 2003 Mr. Chairman and George (George Soros, CEO, Soros Foundation), Prime Ministers and Friends, Let me first thank our hosts from Hungary and you Prime Minister Medyessy for all that you have done to make this meeting so successful. Let me thank also our colleagues in the European Union for their joint sponsorship of this meeting with the Soros Foundation and the World Bank. I have been sitting quietly, wondering what one could add after the remarkable sequence of speeches made by those who attended the conference and by the political leadership of the region. I suppose the first thing that one should observe is that this is truly a unique occasion—to have nine government leaders, one after the other indicating their commitment to our joint programs, to have nine government leaders recognize publicly and in the presence of Roma leadership the need to resolve an issue, which has been with us for centuries, and to establish the sense of urgency that has been attested to by all, is something that is clearly remarkable. Also remarkable were the opening statements—the statements by Roma youth and Roman women—put in such an articulate and eloquent ways and a summary of the proceedings by Dena Ringold from our World Bank team, to whom I owe enormous debt for the work that she has done in preparing this conference. It was truly a start that certainly moved my heart. As was mentioned by Mr. Rudolf Chmel, Slovakia’s Minister of Culture, the substance of the conference made me feel that statistics on the Roma condition are important, but that people are more important, that the heart and soul and the humanity conveyed today is what matters. I was touched by Mark Malloch Brown’s (UNDP Administrator) comments when he mentioned how in our crazy world we globalize and people turn up in the strangest of places. I suppose the first globalized citizens are in fact the Roma, because they have been spread across several regions perhaps longer than anybody else. In the context of today’s unpredictable world, I was struck by Mark’s (Mark Malloch Brown, UNDP Administrator) reference to Mr. Saxe- Coburg Gotha of Bulgaria, a Prime Minister who was a King, to George Soros, an immigrant Hungarian and now a tycoon, and myself a poor Australian Jewish boy now running the World Bank. We are all here to deal with the question of the Roma. We are united not because of our backgrounds, but because this is an issue which speaks to us all at a human level. And it is at the level of humanity that we come together, not a level that we are forced to, or a level of conscience, or a level of moral persuasion. Finally, we united because we have come to recognize, as we look around the world, that it is just impossible to let this issue persist in the way that it has. We in our institution (The World Bank Group) deal with poverty around the world in developed and developing countries. Today 5 billion people out of the total world population of 6 billion live in developing countries. An estimated 3 billion are living on under 2 dollars a day. These 3 billion people account for half of humanity. And, in grappling with persistent poverty, we talk of sub-Saharan Africa as Mark (Mark Malloch Brown, UNDP Administrator) said, we talk of the issues in South Asia, and we talk in very similar terms about the problems of indigenous people, about the problems of gender rights, about the problems of education, of opportunity of prejudice and the frustrations that flow from it, and of the terror and of the wars that come when poverty is allowed to exist and when people have no hope. We describe the world of the Middle East, and describe the world of Africa, of Kashmir and other places in these terms. And then we come to Europe, rich Europe—with an economy of about $9 trillion—and then in the midst of Europe we have the same problem, described in the same terms. Problems of inequity, problems of social injustice, problems of prejudice, problems of ignorance, problems of not caring. In this context, it simply is not right that the Roma issue should not be dealt with in Europe. Fortunately, as we deal with the question of accession into the European Union and as citizenship is offered to all, and will be offered to 5 million more people of Roma origin within the framework of the European Union, we are here to confront this issue head on. Of course, in the face of economic challenges, it is difficult to bring about change when there is limited growth, and we all share that conundrum. But what is clear is that much can be done, and much will be done in relation to the injustices facing our Roma colleagues, which all of us are determined to confront. What I found deeply moving in Prime Minister Medgyessy’s introduction, as well as in the speeches of the other leaders, was that they all went beyond national work and national initiatives and also spoke to the need for regional attention. Everyone spoke in terms of humanity. This conference was not a political gathering. This was a gathering that reflects a very real change, a very real recognition. If we can carry from this chamber—with pride and with the sense of commitment—out into the world that sometimes buffets us and makes us forget these things; if we can carry that out, then this Budapest meeting will surely be one of historic proportions. This is an event in which under the leadership of the Hungarian Prime Minister, we have agreed on a course of action. A course of action that is visible, a course of action that can be measured, a course of action for which we all will be judged accountable. Today we agreed to pursue the following two initatives. One is to pursue a decade of Roma inclusion to run from 2005 to 2015. This will in no way reinvent initiatives already taken, nor will it replace successful efforts already under way. This initiative will help us understand those ongoing efforts, learn from them and build on them so that we can bring to the attention of the European and global public this decade of progress that we will all plan for. And why will it take a year for us to define and outline this? Because we do not want to present today an empty program. We want to come back to you in a year with a program that has been analyzed, negotiated, enriched and is practical, and pragmatic, and around which we can be held accountable. This is not a year’s pause, this is a year’s work. This will be done under the leadership of Prime Minister Medgyessy together with his colleagues from the other countries, all of whom agree that this is a useful initiative. Each leader will appoint representatives to work on this, but they will remain personally involved and committed. Also, the initiative will engage the full cooperation of the European Union, the Soros Foundation, the World Bank and other interested groups that wish to join us. But most importantly, this initiative will constitute a true partnership with the Roma people. Roma leaders and representatives will shape, contribute to and guide our decisions. I think today we saw evidence of the intellect and the passion of these leaders. I am well aware that some who have not spoken today, but to whom references have been made, such as Nicolae Gheorghe who has made his own huge contribution, should be recognized and included in what will be an inherently open process. And we will be back with that plan in 12 months or so. The second initiative will be an education fund, which we design in consultation with the same group. I think we agree with what has been said—that housing and unemployment are equally important, as is health, as is gender, as is so many of the issues that arouse advocates for social justice. But, as a particular and singular initiative, we are committed to this education fund. So as we launch these intiatives and get the organizing group started, I think it is fair to say that all of us, including Roma leaders whom I have spoken to, believe that this has not just been another meeting. This is an epochal event that will make a lasting difference in the lives of Roma people. And of course it is easy to be cynical, it is easy to say, well, what is different. What is different is all of you in this audience. The future of this depends on each of your contributions. The future of this depends on us going out of here changed, and optimistic, and prepared to work. Certainly, I can speak with conviction for my own organization (The World Bank Group), where our mission is to fight poverty with passion and we measure our success in terms of human results. For us this is a cause that we embrace warmly, a cause that is central to the human spirit, and a cause that we will succeed in addressing in this coming year and in the years ahead. Again thank you Prime Minister for your leadership.