Skopje, 19 May 2026 (MIA) - Fabián Sánchez, representative of Spain's State Council of the Roma People (CEPG) and president of Asociación Nacional Presencia Gitana, tells MIA that the Roma community is the most discriminated ethnic ethnic group in Spain, while the CEPG ensures their voice is heard when designing different policies related to Roma.

Sánchez, who is visiting the country at the invitation of Minister for integration and implementation of the Roma Inclusion Strategy, Shaban Saliu, attended Tuesday a discussion dedicated to issues that are significant for the Roma community and the European integration process, also including Spanish Ambassador Rafael Soriano Ortiz.

"The Roma people are present in every European country. We have many similar challenges and things to address. For example, in terms of anti-Gypsyism and discrimination, we face many problems in Spain. The Roma community is the most discriminated ethnic ethnic group in Spain. But also we have similar challenges in terms of housing, employment, or education. We also focus a lot in terms of participation and recognition of Roma people because it's not only inclusion," says Sánchez.

He says focus should be placed on equality and participation of Roma in the political, cultural, social, and economic life, adding there are many challenges that need to be addressed and "are unfortunately shared with other European countries like North Macedonia."

"Today I am going to present one of the good practices, which is the National Roma Council that I am part of. It was established in 2005 and it's part of the Spanish government. It's a channel of cooperation and dialogue between the Roma civil society and the Spanish government. The Roma participation and the Roma voice in all the different policies related to Roma are fundamental in the implementation of different strategies," says Sánchez.

The basis of the strategy, he adds, is the channel of cooperation - the State Council - and from this we can address the different problems that we face through working groups on equality, housing, and culture.

"So, this is a good practice. And later, for example, in terms of employment, we launched the first 2005-2028 employment plan specifically for the Roma community with an allocated budget, which is something very positive. In terms of culture, one should highlight the contributions of the Roma people to Spain's cultural heritage. And this is also something positive that I'm going to explain today," says Sánchez.

Regarding the way in which EU enlargement with the Western Balkans could contribute to improving the status and the challenges facing the Roma community, he says all countries should be part of common initiatives.

"As I mentioned, we Roma are present in every EU and non-EU country. For example, the Decade of Roma Inclusion Initiative 2005-2015, which North Macedonia presided over for a year, was a very good initiative because we were sitting together, countries from the EU and not part of the Union, sharing good practices, collaborating, establishing plans together. Unfortunately, now we have different frameworks in the EU and outside the EU. So, I think we should all be part of some common initiatives," says Sánchez.

According to him, today's meeting is very relevant because "we can, after many years, discuss topics together, in terms of Roma inclusion and participation."

"I know that the government of North Macedonia is participating in many EU forums. For example, I had the opportunity to meet with Minister Saliu during Roma Week, held last month in Brussels. It is very important to open this perspective to collaborate, to participate in EU and non-EU forums, to work together and collaborate. I would like to congratulate the government of North Macedonia and also the Spanish Embassy for making this possible," says Sánchez.

Photo: Frosina Naskovikj