In this page:
The practice was implemented in order to know in greater detail the reality of racism in Spain.
Some EU countries include racial and ethnic discrimination as another variable in statistics, surveys and studies. This also obeys a recommendation of international organisations such as the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination of the United Nations, which in its latest report reminded Spain that it should have this type of information to better understand, monitor and be able to act against discrimination suffered by ethnic population groups. The European Commission's 2020–2025 Anti-Racism Action Plan also points out the need for coordination on this issue.
The practice consisted of a debate on the possibility of collecting data on ethnic origin in order to accurately diagnose and better understand, monitor and act against racial or ethnic discrimination suffered by Africans, Afro-descendants, Asians, Roma and other groups who have not undergone any migratory process and/or are Spanish.
The debate was held with national institutions, such as the National Statistics Institute and the Spanish Data Protection Agency, as well as with more than 40 civil society organisations.
Moreover, discussions were held within representative councils, such as the State Council of the Roma People or the Council for the Elimination of Racial and Ethnic Discrimination. They invited to their plenary meetings representatives of national institutions such as the above, but also European organisations, such as FRA.
On the other hand, this debate has also been dealt with in seminars organised by the Ministry of Equality, such as the Anti-Racism Week in 2021 and 2022, to which experts on the issue at the national and international levels were invited, as well as representatives of various population groups.
Carlos Morán Ferrés Deputy A. Director-General for Equal Treatment and Ethnic Diversity Ministry of Equality Calle Alcalá 37, Madrid Tel. 915243286cmoran@igualdad.gob.es