Spain: young Roma students acquiring new skills

The Porto Declaration, and Commissioner Von der Leyen's State of the EU speech indicated that a ‘workforce with the right skills’ is a crucial factor for current and future competitiveness of our social market economy. The declaration of 2023, along with the European Year of Skills, supports this idea and aims to ensure that the economic recovery as well as the green and digital transitions are socially fair and just, promoting inclusive investment in training and upskilling. 

TandEM programme  

Within the national recovery plan and funded by Next Generation funds under the Youth Employment Investment, the State Public Employment Service (SEPE) launched the State-wide TándEM programme for young people aged 16-29.  

TandEM aims to provide training in alternation with employment in projects inspired by public workshop schools, addressing the skills necessary for the twin transition, social assistance, and territorial cohesion. Projects must also support productive transformation in activities with green, digital and sustainable impact focusing on local resources that promote a cohesive and dignifying society of citizen rights. SEPE's subsidised projects are carried out by different entities, both State public sector organisations and entities and foundations. 

TandEM for Roma people 

Fundación Secretariado Gitano (FSG) received a subsidy to implement four sub-programmes, for a total of 50 young Roma men and women for 12 months, from December 2022 to December 2023 (3 months of initial training and 9 months of training combined with employment).  

Fundación Secretariado Gitano (FSG) is a foundation in Spain that works towards the integral promotion of the Roma community. Through different activities and areas of work, the FSG contributes to achieving full citizenship of Roma persons, improving their living conditions, promoting equal treatment, and preventing all forms of discrimination. It caters to 35 000 Roma persons each year. 

Most participants (40%) have no studies, 68% are young men and they come from 28 different cities in Spain. They are trained in three different training specialties: 

• maintenance and landscaping of green areas;
• intercultural and community mediation with the Roma population;
• support and maintenance of computer systems and departmental networks. 

During the first 3 months of initial training, the young people receive a daily allowance of EUR 9. During the 9 months in which they are learning and working, they receive 65% of the minimum wage in Spain. 

Roma people in Spain 

FSG estimates the Roma population in Spain at around 750 000, based on previous studies. Some 66% are under the age of 30, compared to the Spanish average of 33%. Their unemployment rate is three times higher than the general population at 52%, while 83% have not completed lower secondary education (ESO) and 63% are NEETs. 

European support 

The European Commission supports the TándEM initiative, as shown by the visit of Margaritis Schinas, Vice-President of the European Commission, to the Madrid headquarters of the Fundación Secretariado Gitano (FSG), where he met the young Roma men and women participating in the programme. Participants expressed their satisfaction highlighting the value of a programme that responds to a double challenge: the training they receive and their work practice, opening up real opportunities for a better life project. 

In the context of the European Year of Skills 2023, the Vice-President underlined the importance of programmes such as TandEM, in particular to improve digital skills.

Read more

• Information on TandEM programme
• Fundación Secretariado Gitano
• Training specialties
• Workshop schools
• Comparative study on the situation of the Roma population in Spain in relation to employment and poverty 2018