The European Union's EUROsociAL cooperation programme participated in the 8th meeting of EU, Latin American and Caribbean civil society organisations by presenting the Programme, the results of its actions in the area of social dialogue, and the main conclusions and recommendations of its publication "Economic and Social Councils in Latin America and the European Union. Practical experiences of social dialogue". 

Since 1999 the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has been organising the meetings of European Union, Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) civil society organisations at the request of the European Commission. The eighth edition was held on 11th and 12th March 2015 in Brussels. These meetings are held every two years prior to the EU-CELAC Heads of State and Government Summits. They facilitate dialogue between EU and LAC civil society organisations, strengthen these organisations, and allow Heads of State to hear the points of view of organised civil society.

The meeting brought together over 100 participants: EESC members, representatives of organised civil society in LAC, and invited speakers. The issues debated included climate change, inequality, the informal economy, and economic development factors between the two regions.

The inauguration included the participation of Ronald Schafer, Director of the Department for the Americas of the European External Action Service; Marcus Cornaro, Deputy Director General of the Directorate-General of International Cooperation and Development of the European Commission; Rebeca Grynspan, Ibero-American Secretary General; Erika Guzmán, EU-LAC Foundation Connect programme manager; Luis Guillermo Coto Moya, President of the Consultative Committee of the Central American Integration System; and José María Zufiaur, President of the Foreign Relations Section of the EESC. 

At the end of the meeting, a joint final declaration was issued with recommendations on the issues discussed. This will be presented at the EU-CELAC Heads of State and Government Summit in June 2015.

The EUROsociAL presentation took place in the framework of the action aimed at strengthening ESCs or similar organisations in Latin America, which is being coordinated by the FIIAP with the Spanish ESC as the operational partner.