CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-GENCRIME-1 – Strengthening the remembrance of Roma victims

Identifikátor témy: CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-GENCRIME-1 Výzva: CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM – European Remembrance - 2026 Program: Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV) Časť programu: European Remembrance Typ akcie: CERV-LS CERV Lump Sum Grants Typ zmluvy (MGA): CERV Lump Sum Grant Stav: Open Otvorenie: 21. 10. 2026 Termín(y) podania: 24. 2. 2027 Rozpočet: 28 000 000 € (spoločný s témami CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-HISTMIGRATION, CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-TRANSITION, CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-GENCRIME-2, CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-HOLOCAUSTJEW)

Objective:

3. Strengthening the remembrance of the Holocaust, acts of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity to strengthen democracy in the EU.

Projects under this topic should focus on the non-Jewish victims of the Holocaust as well as other genocides, war crimes and crimes against humanity of the 20th century’s Europe.

Projects under this topic should NOT address the Holocaust against Jewish people which are covered by Topic 2.

CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-GENCRIME-1 - Priority 1: Strengthening the remembrance of Roma victims

The genocide of Roma and Sinti under Nazi rule, known as Porajmos or Samudaripen, is a defining yet insufficiently recognized legacy for the European Union. An estimated 500,000 Roma, including Sinti and Travellers, were murdered, and countless others were persecuted, deported, forcibly sterilized, and subjected to inhuman treatment. The Nazi regime implemented racial policies aimed at the systematic destruction of Roma communities across Europe, culminating in mass killings such as the liquidation of the Roma camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau on 2 August 1944, now commemorated as European Roma Holocaust Memorial Day.

The Roma Holocaust must be understood within a longer continuum of antigypsyism in Europe. Roma were enslaved for nearly five centuries in the territories of present-day Romania, deprived of legal personhood and basic rights. In the 20th century, persecution continued under fascist and communist regimes and, in several countries, through forced sedentarisation, assimilation policies, and coercive practices including forced sterilizations. These historical injustices have had lasting socio-economic consequences.

Despite this, Roma persecution remains underrepresented in school curricula, museums, and public memorials. Dedicated research centres, permanent monuments, and teaching materials on Roma history and the Roma Holocaust are limited. This structural invisibility contributes to persistent antigypsyism, distortion, and denial.

As survivor numbers decline, preserving testimonies, memorial sites, and archival materials becomes increasingly urgent. Commemorative initiatives such as 2 August – European Roma Holocaust Memorial Day – and 16 May – Romani Resistance Day require stronger institutional support and integration into European remembrance culture.

Current political developments also demonstrate the vulnerability of Roma Holocaust memory. Historical distortion, trivialization, and denial — often intertwined with broader antigypsyist narratives — undermine democratic values. Memory competition and selective recognition of victimhood risk reinforcing exclusion. Citizens must be empowered to counter distortion, denial, and the minimization of the Roma genocide. In line with the EU Roma Strategic Framework for Equality Inclusion and Participation 2020-2030, special priority will be given to projects that strengthen Roma Holocaust remembrance while addressing the deeper roots of antigypsyism.

Projects under this priority could focus on:

- Documenting the implementation of the Roma genocide and its historical context, including slavery, post-war persecution and totalitarian persecutions. - Countering denial, distortion, trivialization, and the marginalization of Roma victimhood. - Developing networks of Roma and non-Roma youth ambassadors to promote remembrance and counter antigypsyism. - Supporting grassroots commemorative initiatives, including activities marking 2 August – European Roma Holocaust Memorial Day, 16 May – Romani Resistance Day, etc. - Developing and disseminating teaching materials that integrate Roma history and the Roma Holocaust into national curricula. - Digitalizing testimonies, archival documents, and historical research to preserve memory for future generations. - Promoting research on Roma restitution, forced displacement, and long-term consequences of historical injustice. - Collecting, documenting and disseminating stories of Roma resistance, heroes, rescuers, intellectuals, artists and community leaders, highlighting Roma agency, resilience and contribution to European history. - Applying transitional justice approaches, including truth-seeking, recognition of harm, restitution research, and guarantees of non-repetition through education and memorialization. - Developing inclusive, participatory ways to remember, educate about, and teach about these crimes in order to prevent the resurgence of hatred, including antigypsyism. This may include artistic memory projects, memory activism, and other approaches that foster an enabling learning environment.

For further information about the call and its conditions, please see the Call document.

Conditions

1. Admissibility conditions: Proposal page limit and layout

Described in the Call document.

Proposal page limits and layout:

- 70 pages as decribed in the section "5. Admissibility and documents" of the Call document - Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System.

2. Eligible countries

Described in the section "6. Eligibility" of the Call document.

3. Other eligibility conditions

Described in the section "6. Eligibility" of the Call document.

4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion

Described in the section “7. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion” of the Call document.

5a. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes

Described in the sections “8. Evaluation and award procedure” and “11. How to submit an application” of the Call document.

5b. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds

Described in the section “9. Award criteria” of the Call document.

5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement

Described in the section "4. Timetable and deadlines" of the Call document.

Publication of the call: 1 October 2026.

Opening for submission: 21 October 2026.

Deadline for submitting applications: 24 February 2027, 17:00 CET (Brussels time).

Evaluation period: February 2027 – August 2027.

Information to applicants: August 2027.

Signature of grant agreement: August 2027 - November 2027.

6. Legal and financial set-up of the grants

Described in the section “10. Legal and financial set-up of the Grant Agreements” of the Call document.

Call document and annexes:

Call document

Application form templates

Standard application form (CERV) — The application form specific to this call is available in in the Funding: Submission Service by clicking on Start Submission.

The online application form (Part A) contains administrative information about the participants (future coordinator, beneficiaries and affiliated entities) the Lump Sum Budget* and the summarised budget for the project.

- Please note that, as of 2026, the Lump Sum Calculator is included in the online application form (Part A).

Model Grant Agreements (MGA)

Lump Sum MGA

Additional documents:

CERV Work Programmes

CERV Regulation 2021/692

EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509

Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment

EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement

Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual

Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions

Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement

DECISION authorising the use of lump sums for actions under the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (2021-2027)

Aktuality k téme: - 2026-10-21: The submission session is now available for CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-TRANSITION, CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-HOLOCAUSTJEW, CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-GENCRIME-1, CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-GENCRIME-2 and CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM-HISTMIGRATION. - 2026-10-15: INFO SESSION - EUROPEAN REMEMBRANCE - 2026 The European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) is organising an event called Civil Dialogue Group - Online Info Session: Call for proposals European Remembrance - 2026 (CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM) on 5 November 2026, from 9:30 to 17:00, Brussels time. Link to the website of the event, including the link to the registration platform: Online info session: CERV Civil Dialogue Group - 2026 Call for Proposals European Remembrance - European Education and Culture Executive Agency The registration closes on 30 October 2026 at 17:00 Brussels time. - 2026-10-15: INFO SESSION - EUROPEAN REMEMBRANCE – 2026 – SAVE THE DATE The European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) will organise a full day event called Civil Dialogue Group - Online Info Session: Call for proposals European Remembrance - 2026 (CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM) on 5 November 2026. Further information on the event and the link to the registration platform will follow. - 2026-10-01: CALL DOCUMENT TRANSLATIONS The French and German translations of the CERV-2026-CITIZENS-REM Call document are available on this webpage