This Annual Report 2009 is the second to be produced under the legal basis and mandate of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), whose founding regulation came into effect in March 2007. The first section of the Annual Report provides an overview of the state of implementation of the Racial Equality Directive, focusing on the functions of the Equality Bodies. The next section outlines the extent and nature of racist violence and related crime in the EU, including emergent trends and responses to the problem, based on latest available data for comparison. It also highlights the continuing problem in many Member States of inadequate official criminal justice data on racist crime, which is symptomatic of a lack of political focus and resource allocation to address the problem.