France and her suburbs

France and her suburbs

Now, over a year since the violence which took place in November 2005 in some of the problem areas surrounding some of France’s cities, seems a good time for an initial assessment of the measures taken to avoid any repetition of it.

All analyses have shown that the violence had no religious, racial or political motivation, but stemmed essentially from an economic and social problem.

Consequently, the government has acted in four main areas: employment, education, housing and the fight against discrimination. This action is in addition to the continuation of earlier measures, policies, initiated several years ago.

1. Principal measures taken during 2006 in the priority areas in response to the violence.

On employment, education, housing and the fight against discrimination, the government’s aim has been to ensure greater equality of opportunity between residents of disadvantaged areas and the rest of French society.
- Creation of six deputy “préfets”1 (known as “préfets délégués pour l’égalité des chances”) in the six departments most affected by the urban violence to work with local elected representatives and the voluntary sector on employment, educational support, housing, urban regeneration, transport and preventing violence.
- Employment:

- Creation of 15 new zones franches urbaines [urban enterprise areas], an initiative offering tax breaks and other incentives to businesses locating in these urban neighbourhoods to bring back jobs: 12,000 jobs are expected to be created, including 4,000 in the most deprived neighbourhoods.
- Over six months (between April and September 2006), 158,000 young people visited the national employment agency (ANP) or what are known as "local missions", an outreach scheme providing counselling and guidance for young people under the age of 26. 50% of them are no longer unemployed.
- Joint government-business initiatives: in Mureaux (north-west of Paris), Renault has recruited over 260 unskilled young people and adults for training. In one year, unemployment has fallen by 15%. In ten years, 175 businesses have set up. A third economic hub is planned for 20072.- Integration/employment: establishment of a voluntary civilian service based on existing systems, such as the Republic’s Cadets3, “Second Chance Defence”4 and community volunteering). The civilian service was expected to number 50,000 youngsters at the end of 2006.
- Housing, employment, education, transport5: Urban Social Cohesion Contracts, effective from 1 January 2007, will simplify the administration of urban policy. They focus on five priorities: access to jobs and economic development, improving housing and the environment, educational success and equal opportunities, good citizenship and crime prevention and access to healthcare. 201 regeneration projects for 355 neighbourhoods, covering over two million residents, have been drawn up. 182,000 dwellings are being renovated and 84,000 social housing units being built (there are currently over 4.2 million). Over the medium term, agreements for €30 billion worth of works, including €5 billion funded by central government, have been signed.
- Education:

- the “ambition réussite (AR)” network programme: 249 collèges (11-15 year-olds) whose pupils come mainly from underprivileged social backgrounds and of whom many have fallen behind educationally have been classified as AR and will receive more resources and teachers.
- 10 October 2006, Education Minister Gilles de Robien launched the “100,000 graduates for 100,000 pupils” campaign. Under the slogan “entrer en prépa à l’ENS, c’est possible”6, 40 students of the Ecole normale supérieure [ENS – prestigious university lecturer training college] tutor pupils in the penultimate year before the baccalauréat, the examination giving access to university. For four years, in 13 lycées in France, they will have the task of encouraging pupils and helping them prepare for the higher-education courses in which France excels.
- June 2006 saw the launch of a debate on equal opportunities on the website www.forum.gouv.fr2. Some policies launched several years ago are being pursued.

These are in the areas of urban policy, education and the promotion of economic initiatives and are being implemented by central government, certain teacher-training establishments and local voluntary organizations. They include:

- Urban policy, on which a major part of the government’s action is focused, consisting of a series of measures designed to improve certain urban neighbourhoods and narrow the social inequality gap between different areas. It was initiated in the late 1970s:- 1977: social housing rehabilitation schemes with central government financial aid.
- 1982: creation of Priority Education Areas (ZEPs, i.e. areas where a disadvantaged social and cultural environment makes educating pupils particularly difficult).
- 1994: first contrats de ville [contracts between central and local government requiring each partner to implement action to improve the daily lives of inhabitants in deprived neighbourhoods of a specific town] covering housing stock, environment, education, transport, safety, culture, sports facilities and social services.
- 2003: creation of the Agence nationale pour la rénovation urbaine to encourage more socially mixed housing and bring in a greater mix of commercial, economic, cultural and leisure activities.
- October 2006: establishment of the Agence nationale pour la cohésion sociale et l’égalité des chances [national agency for social cohesion and equal opportunities]. Its aim is to bring under one roof all the measures to help people finding it difficult to integrate into society or the workplace.

- For several years now, some prestigious higher-education establishments have been taking initiatives to increase equality of opportunity:- The Conventions Education Prioritaires de Sciences Po [prestigious higher-education establishment for political science]: back in 2001, Sciences Po had the idea of signing agreements with some suburban lycées, under which their best pupils could gain entrance to Sciences Po. Six years later, the system is up and running.
- The programme "Une prépa, une grande école, pourquoi pas moi ?" [one prépa6, one grande école, why not me?]: this programme was launched in January 2003 with the idea of it subsequently going nationwide. Pupils from year 12 in suburban lycées have been given extra support during their last three years at school (tutoring, outings, etc.), giving them the opportunity to develop ambitious plans for their futures. Around 50 schools are actively participating in the debate on equality of opportunity and achieving a wider social mix in higher education.

· Business start-ups are being encouraged through initiatives such as "Talents des Cités" [talents from the suburban housing estates].

Running since 2002 and launched at the initiative of the Ministry for Employment, Social Cohesion and Housing, "Talents des cités" is a national competition designed to support business start-ups and the development of businesses in the priority areas covered by France’s urban policy. So far, over 180 young people have been rewarded, thereby becoming what are known as "ambassadors of success". Their creativity and determination counter the too often negative image of these estates. Today, former award winners help and encourage other young people, liaising with local businesses. The most recent prizewinners were presented with their prizes (which can be as much as €3,000) on 14 October 2006 at a ceremony in the French Senate./.

1 a high-ranking civil servant who represents the State at the level of the department or region.

2 source: “Le Monde”, 25 October 2006.

3 which gives young people from disadvantaged milieus who would never have had the idea of working in the security services – the police, gendarmerie, fire service – the possibility of taking sandwich courses, from the age of 16, in a vocational lycée and a police college or fire service training centre. This enables these young people to prepare the entrance tests for the fire or police service and, if successful, join their chosen service.

4 www.ambafrance-uk.org/Defence-2nd-Chance.html

5 http://www.premier-ministre.gouv.fr/information/actualites_20/dominique_villepin_fait_point_57055.html

6 the classe préparatoire, or prépa, is a special class preparing for the competitive examination for a grande école.

Last updated: 17.01.2007