In this opinion, the EESC presents its recommendations on the proposed EU Anti-Poverty Strategy. It explores the initiatives that social partners and civil society could undertake to better adapt policy frameworks for combating poverty, and how they can effectively address its root causes to decisively reduce poverty levels and ensure a sustained downward trend.
The Belgian presidency asked the EESC to provide an opinion on how to tackle poverty through social innovation and the development of the social economy. The fight against poverty and social exclusion must take into account the numerous dimensions of the concept of poverty that affect access to employment, education, healthcare, housing, food, mobility, digital tools, energy and culture, among other things. A cross-cutting approach to poverty is therefore essential in order to ensure social inclusion. Even though all economic actors are involved in the fight against poverty, it is up to the state to exercise its full responsibility in this area. The social economy contributes to this fight in an organic and cross-cutting way, through its diverse activities and social orientation.
