SPANISH SOCIAL INTEGRATION

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The State Secretary for Immigration and Emigration, Anna Terrón, and the State Secretary for Equality, Bibiana Aído, met yesterday with their Rumanian counterpart, Valentín Mocanu, to discuss the situation of the Rumanian community in Spain.

The purpose of the meeting was to examine the situation of Rumanian citizen integration in Spain. Rumanians account for the largest foreign community in Spain, with 793,205 Rumanians holding a current residency permit.

The Rumanian State Secretary also expressed an interest in gaining first-hand knowledge of the good practices that Spain has been developing in terms of integrating the Roma community, which has recently become something of a European benchmark. Valentín Mocanu believes the keys to this success lie in the emphasis placed on actions undertaken at a local level and in the leading role played by Rumanian associations in the process.

The three State Secretaries agreed to further examine a global strategy involving the reinforcement of European Union action plans, the actions taken by Rumania and cooperation between Spain and Rumania. In this regard, they agreed to organise a seminar in Bucharest soon in order to report on the Spanish experience regarding the integration of the Roma community.

The meeting was also used to discuss cooperation between the two governments on combating the trafficking of human beings for sexual exploitation, in particular aspects related to prevention and raising awareness.