The role of Social Partners in Promoting Sustainable Growth and Inclusive Growth and Development

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The role of Social Partners in Promoting
Sustainable Growth and Inclusive Growth and
Development

• Sound Partners for Sustainable Growth and
  Inclusive DevelopmentLO Skolen, Elsinore, 7-9
  May 2012
• Hjördis DAgostino Ogendo, Development and
  Cooperation DG, European Commission

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• 1. EC/EU responses policy framework
• 2. Role of social partners in inclusive growth
• 3. EU support
• 4. Challenges for supporting social partners and
  social dialogue

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• 1
• EU Policy Responses

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EU policy framework I

• 2011 Communication by European
• Commission on Increasing the Impact of EU
  development policy An Agenda for Change
• Eradicate poverty is the primary objective of
  development policy
• Continuing support of MDGs essential but not
  sufficient

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Agenda for change - continues

• EU Development policy and aid should be spent
  efficient, delivers the best results
• greatest impact should concentrate aid to
• Human rights, democracy and other elements of
  good governance
• Inclusive and sustainable growth for human
  development

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Agenda for change - continues

• Differentiation
• Coordinated EU action
• Improved policy coherence

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Agenda for Change - some challenges

• High economic growth had not lead to sufficiently
  poverty reduction (fulfill MDG 1?) and decent
  work creation
• High and Increasing income inequality
• Low share in formal employment mostly
  self-employment either in agriculture or informal
  economy
• New jobs created mostly in the informal economy
  
• low wages, poor working conditions, no or
  limited social protection coverage and no or low
  degree of social dialogue (social partners)
  mainly women and young people
• Main issue is not unemployment but absence of
  decent jobs

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Inclusive and sustainable growth for human
development

• So rate of economic growth per se not sufficient
  but economic patterns are equally important for
  long term poverty reduction
• We need inclusive economic growth or pro-poor
  growth
• peoples ability to participate in contribute
  to and benefit from wealth and job creation
  promotion of decent work
• Support sectors that build foundations for growth
  ie education, health and social protection
• Target to reach 20 of EU aid on social
  inclusion and human development

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EU Responses policy framework II

• 2005 European Consensus for Development
• 2006 Communication and Council Conclusions on
  Promoting Decent Work for all
• 2007 Staff working paper on Promoting Employment
  through EU Development Cooperation and Council
  conclusions

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Conclusions

• EC/EU committed and endorse decent work agenda -
  according to policy documents
• In practice
• In current programming period?
• In future programming period?

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• 2
• The Role of Social Partners

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Role of social partners

• EU level Treaty of Lisbon (art 152)
• The Union is committed to promoting the role of
  European social partners and facilitating the
  dialogue between social partners respecting their
  autonomy
• ...

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Role of social partners

• 2. EU development cooperation
• A number of policy documents that gives a clear
  mandate
• Agenda for change
• civil society and local authorities EU should
  strengthen links with civil society
  organisations, social partners and local
  authorities
• Stronger CSR at international and national level
• Support to the decent work agenda...reaffirmed!

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• 3
• The EU support

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Role of social partners in EU development
cooperation

• 1. Consultation and Structured Dialogue
• Most recently in prep of 2 Communications
• to be adopted by the EC in September 2012
• Social protection in EU development cooperation
• Civil Society Organisations in Development
  Cooperation

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The Role of Social Partners

• 2. Thematic programmes
• Supplementary instrument to EUs support through
  country programmes
• Funding possibilities for... social partners
• Non State Actors and local authorities in
  development
• EIHDR European instrument for democracy and
  human rights
• Investing in people

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• 3. Geographical programmes/cooperation
• ie cooperation with our partner countries
• Support at EU Delegations level
• Social dialogue is missing in the CSP/NIP
• How to strengthen and support social dialogue?
  What can EU do?

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Investing in people thematic programme

• 2007-2013 around 1 Billion
• Good health for all 56
• Education and skills 12
• Other aspects of human and social
  development 21
• Gender equality 5

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2011-2013 Investing in people thematic
programme

• other aspects of human and social development
  divided in
• Social cohesion, employment and decent work
• Children and youth
• Culture

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Investing in people thematic programme

• Promoting social cohesion, employment and decent
  work - total 38 M (2011-2013)
• 1strengthen rights, representation,
  participation, employability and access to social
  protection for informal workers
• 2. Awareness raising on the global level for
  basic level of social protection to all

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• 3. Capacity building and exchange of best
  practices among ..social partners aiming at
  strengthening social dialogue for development and
  implementation of inclusive national employment
  policies
• Preparation of Annual Action Programme 2013 to
  be adopted in 2012 or early 2013

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• EC on-going feasibility study on how to
  strengthen social dialogue in EU development
  cooperation
• Main objectives
• To address ways on strengthening social dialogue
  
• Provide recommendations on how future actions
  could be designed ...in view of the 2013 Annual
  Action Programme of investing in people

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• Seminar on 25 May in Bruxelles
• The draft report of the study will be presented
• The discussion will feed in not only into the
  report but also ideas / proposals for future
  EU actions in AAP 2013 of the Investing in People

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• Challenges include
• High and growing informal economy in our partner
  countries
• Limited and weak capacity of trade unions and
  employers organisation
• Political and lack of respect of human rights and
  labour rights of social partners /trade unions to
  engage in social dialogue

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• Conclusions
• EU is committed to strengthen the role of social
  partners and social dialogue in EU development
  cooperation (politically...)
• But
• How can we do more and better?

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• Thank you for your attention