Presentation of best practices on the Economic and Social Councils of Latin America and Europe
The activity was held at the headquarters of the European Economic and Social Council in Brussels, with participation by senior representatives of the ESCs of the two regions.
From 15th to 17th December 2014, at the headquarters of the European Economic and Social Council in Brussels, there was a workshop entitled International Workshop on Economic and Social Councils and Their Participation in Representative Democracies: European and Latin American Panorama. The activity was organised by the Spanish ESC within the framework of the EUROsociAL "Strengthening bodies involved in dialogue for social cohesion in Latin America" action, which is being coordinated by the FIIAPP.
Along with the experience exchange at the workshop, the book "Economic and Social Councils in Latin America and the European Union. Practical experiences of social dialogue" was presented. The book is compilation of contributions from ESCs and similar institutions in Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, Spain, France, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Ireland, Italy, Panama, Portugal, Dominican Republic, European Union, Buenos Aires, Jalisco, the CESALC Network, the CESE, as well as the FIIAPP, the EULAC Foundation and the International Labour Organisation.
The activity brought together senior representatives from the majority of the aforementioned institutions to discuss the current status of consultation processes, how to strengthen social dialogue, and the role Economic and Social Councils can play in decision-making processes in participative democracies. The working sessions included a visit to the European Economic and Social Council, where the participants were able to meet with representatives of its different groups and learn about its operations in detail.
During the three days of the activity, there was a review of the main results of the actions promoted by EUROsociAL which included creation of CESALC, the ESC network; approval of the new ESC Law in Honduras; promotion, with the active participation of the ESC, of the new draft Framework Law on the Social Protection System of Honduras; and approval of the first socio-economic report by the Guatemalan ESC.
The inauguration of the general event and presentation of the publication included the participation of Marc Litvine, EuropeAid Section Chief for Regional Programmes with Latin America and the Caribbean; Marcos Peña, President of the Spanish ESC; José María Zufiaur, Adviser to the Second Group (labour organisations) and President of the Foreign Relations Section of the European Economic and Social Council; and Ignacio Soleto, Coordinator of the Technical Unit of the Public Finance and Democratic Governance areas of the FIIAPP / EUROsociAL.
- See interviews with some of the participants.
- See a video of the presentation of results.
- Link for downloading the book: Los Consejos Económicos y Sociales en América Latina y en la Unión Europea. Experiencias prácticas de diálogo social / Economic and Social Councils in Latin America and the European Union
FIIAPP
