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This public hearing is being organised as part of the preparation of the exploratory opinion ECO/630 on "Boosting long-term inclusive growth through reforms and investment" requested by the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU. It focuses on how to foster upwards social convergence and cohesion, in an economic governance framework defined around debt sustainability, productive investments and reforms. It also looks at the implications of such a framework for the European Semester and the strengthening of the European Pillar of Social Rights.

The EESC is convinced that islands, mountainous regions and sparsely populated areas face significant challenges and that there is a solid legal basis that obliges the EU to take action in order to tackle these challenges. In this context, the organised civil society has an important role to play and through this debate, the aim is to find the best practices and solutions so that these regions can perform better and recover from the multiple crises. Therefore the EESC- ECO section has decided to organise this public debate in the framework of the EESC own-intiative opinion on "Main challenges that EU islands, mountain and sparsely populated areas face.

Insularity is considered to be a permanent and unchangeable geographical feature which involves additional costs (transport, energy, waste management, public services, necessity goods and services) that hamper the development and competitiveness of the islands, while particularly exposing them to biodiversity loss and climate change. The organised civil society has an important role to play and tackle all these challenges and through this debate. The aim is to find the best practices and solutions so that EU islands can preform better and recover from the multiple crises.

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) will be producing an own-initiative opinion on the main challenges faced by EU islands and mountainous and sparsely populated areas, which is scheduled for adoption at the EESC's September plenary session. In this context, the EESC, along with the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR) and the North Sweden European Office (NSEO), will be holding a public hearing in Umeå (Sweden) on 4 May 2023 entitled "Challenges and opportunities that the digital and energy transitions present to the northern sparsely populated areas and islands. How can these regions become drivers for growth and development?". The hearing is an event under the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the EU.

The EESC will organise a hearing with the title: ''New own resources package: The three engines for financing growth and recovery of the European economy'' in order to present the views of all relevant stakeholders and civil society for this initiative to support the funds for NextGenerationEU.

A proposed review of EU banking rules aims at ensuring that EU banks become more resilient to potential future economic shocks, while contributing to Europe's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and the transition to climate neutrality. The public hearing will provide the views of institutional and civil society stakeholders, and will help form the policy recommendations the EESC is drawing up on the legislative proposals currently under discussion.

The conference "The Anti-Money Laundering Legislative Package" will take stock of the state of play and debate in particular the legislative proposals tabled by the European Commission in July 2021 to strengthen the EU's anti-money laundering and countering terrorism financing (AML/CFT) rules.

The conference is organised on 5 October 2021, starting at 14:30.

The event is accessible via webstream. No registration is needed, and participation is free of charge.

The Recovery and Resilience Facility is moving into its next phase, and the European Semester Group of the EESC is following the process. In this high-level conference we will discuss whether the national recovery and resilience plans will deliver as regards the aim of achieving fair, inclusive, competitive and sustainable growth and cohesion through the new growth strategy – the European Green Deal. Focus will be on the implementation of the national recovery and resilience plans, with particular attention on the implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights and the just transition towards a green, digital and sustainable European economy. The conclusions of this event will be forwarded to EU institutions and the "EU Recovery Summit" conference in Lisbon on 28 June 2021.

Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) played a central role in bringing the consensual views of organised civil society in the EU to the attention of policy-makers and contributing to the rapidly evolving economic policy response at European level. 

In this regard, we believe that now is the time for the EU institutions to make decisive steps in approving swiftly the new Facility and putting in place the necessary implementation mechanisms at European and national level, so that the hardest hit Member States, citizens and businesses can benefit from the relevant EU funding when they need it most.

Against this background, and on the occasion of the first meeting of the EESC's Section for Economic and Monetary Union and Economic and Social Cohesion (ECO) in our new term-of-office (2020-2025), we are organising a thematic debate on this issue between European policy-makers and civil society representatives.

The debate will take place on Thursday, 19 November 2020 from 14.30 to 16.40 as an online event, webstreamed live on the EESC website.