European Economic and Social Committee
As the Russian invasion of Ukraine puts the spotlight on European defence, the European Economic and Social Committee has said in an opinion that it wants to see coordinated action and spending from Member States and a comprehensive European defence industrial strategy.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) calls on the EU and Member States to work on better communicating fundamental rights and the rule of law towards the general population. In its opinion, the EESC suggests focusing on fairness and justice and giving a voice to those who experience human rights and human rights violations first hand.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) held a debate on how to improve access to finance for women entrepreneurs, as part of Committee's gender equality initiative following up on the Parliament's Gender Equality Week Initiative. Women are underserved when it comes to financing, or not at all provided for. Participants agreed that empowering these women is vital to enhance business productivity and economic growth. Moreover, women in leadership are more conscious of – and deliver on – climate objectives and encourage diversity.
The global food price crisis has only been exacerbated by the war in Ukraine. It is actually due to more structural and systemic problems in the commodities market, creating hunger and threatening people's livelihoods, points out the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) in its own initiative opinion.
On 15 December, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) will award its 2022 Civil Society Prize to six organisations, from Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, and Spain.
The European Economic and Social committee held a public hearing on the European Packaging sector on 9 December 2022. The hearing was organised in cooperation with the Czech Chamber of Commerce and under the auspices of the Czech Presidency of the Council 2022.
With the following guests : Nicolas Schmit, EU Commissioner, Álvaro Albacete Perea (Union for the Mediterranean, Josep Ferré (Anna Lindh Foundation), Ivailo Kalfin (Eurofound), Kinga Stanislawska (European Women in Venture Capital) and Xenia Kazoli (Hellenic corp. governance council).
Civil Society Prize award ceremony on Thursday 15 Dec at 10 am
Europe's care sector will be barely capable of responding to the growing care demands of its ageing population. It is in dire need of major investments and a shift in policy-making, which should ensure that care workers are properly paid, have regulated working hours and receive adequate support. To achieve this, EU action will not be enough, and political will at national level will be crucial, an EESC hearing said.
In the context of the climate emergency, energy crisis and high inflation, the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) and the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) have signed a new environmental commitment with concrete actions to reduce energy consumption, waste, pollution and to improve the overall environmental footprint of all their activities.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) held a debate on Gender Equality and Women's and Girls' empowerment in the context of Food Security and Nutrition. In light of the climate crisis, and in the context of the recent COP27, the EESC has identified the intersection between gender and climate change as a top priority for the EU. The debate is an important contribution to the ongoing EESC initiative on gender equality.
