The opinion should take stock of the current situation of civil society in Serbia (legal environment, relations with the authorities, situation of social and civil dialogues) and propose recommendations for possible EU action in this field. The opinion will provide an opportunity to get the views of Serbian civil society organisations in the course of a study visit to Serbia.
Download — The role of civil society in EU-Serbia relations
The EESC welcomes initiatives to foster productive investment and the formation of long-lived tangible and intangible capital but urges the Commission to give greater attention to the need to finance more "socially useful" capital investment. If banks are likely to play a less prominent role in the future as providers of long-term financing, then opportunities may arise for other intermediaries such as national and multilateral development banks, institutional investors, sovereign funds and, crucially, bond markets. The EESC welcomes the recent recapitalisation of the EIB as this will strengthen its ability to leverage additional private investment finance and to play a stronger countercyclical role in investment funding and credit supply to SMEs..
(...) The EESC believes that developing an inclusive green economy will be Europe's main challenge in the coming years if it wants to remain a global economic power. At the Rio+20 conference, the EU pledged its commitment to the green economy as a form of sustainable development. Now is the time for the EU to take action. This is why we need an economic development model that prioritises public investment and draws up adequate incentives for private investment to develop "green" infrastructure and R&D&I, with the dual purpose of promoting production in order to emerge quickly from the current recession and guiding our transition through this third industrial revolution from a leading economic and social position (...)
Download — The green economy – promoting sustainable development in Europe
