New ESN Inclusion Programme

Welcome to the first edition of the Special Communiqué dedicated to promoting social inclusion.

As one of the key European networks in the fight against poverty and social exclusion, ESN is now being co-funded by the European Commission under the Community Action Programme to combat social exclusion 2002-2006. The purpose of the programme is to reinforce European networks' capacity to play an active role in the support of the Open Method of Co-ordination and particularly in the preparation, development and implementation of the National Action Plans on Social Inclusion. The specific objective of this part of the Community Action Programme is to develop the capacity of actors to address social exclusion and poverty effectively and to promote innovative approaches, in particular through networking at a European level.

Local authorities are vital

Local authorities and social service organisations are at the heart of any effort to address social exclusion and poverty. As local public bodies and transnational local and regional networks of local government and social services, ESN members are natural intermediaries between the local, regional, national and European policy levels. Through their networks, they cooperate with national and European policy levels on a regular basis and their representation will be strengthened through this programme.

The programme

ESN will organise six inclusion seminars of which five will be thematic and the sixth a Brussels-based review and debate of the implementation of the National Action Plans to date and the role of social services within the Open Method of Co-ordination. The five thematic seminars are based on the social inclusion priority areas as identified in the EU Joint Report on Social Protection and Social Inclusion 2005:

Improving access to quality services
Overcoming discrimination and increasing the integration of people with disabilities, ethnic minorities and immigrants
Increasing labour market participation - social activation
Child poverty and social exclusion
Social protection and ageing

One of our tasks is to collect and compare local/regional indicators on access to services, anti-discrimination/integration and employment activation and look at their compatibility with national and EU level indicators.

We would like to ask you as experts in the field to perhaps provide us with examples of indicators. They will be discussed in the thematic seminars and will contribute to the National Action Plan process. We would also be very grateful to receive good practice examples on the thematic areas.

Call for active involvement - the National Action Plan consultation process

It is vital that you exercise your right to participate in the consultation process and make your voices heard. Participation from local government and social services in developing the second round of National Action Plans for social inclusion has increased markedly and In the EU 15, most local government associations took part in the consultation process and many of them were able to influence the contents of the NAPs.

The consultation process in your country has already started and if you did not receive an invitation to contribute - by attending meetings, preparing statements or policy proposals - please contact the responsible Ministry. In most countries, the National Action Plan is written by the Ministry of Social Affairs which is responsible for overseeing the consultation process.

The next newsletter will include examples of consultation processes as found in the Member States and as far as available and dates of consultation meetings in the EU Member States to facilitate your involvement in the NAP process.