Európsky hospodársky a sociálny výbor
The new EU Pact on Migration and Asylum was strongly criticised during a high-level conference held by the European Economic and Social Committee. Representatives of civil society, think tanks and the European Parliament found that the new pact does not deliver the changes needed to create a proper common European migration and asylum system.
At the webinar organised by the Section for Transport, Energy, Infrastructure and the Information Society (TEN), EESC members point out that the contribution of civil society will be fundamental for the future of the EU's hydrogen strategy.
The new president of the EESC's Section for Transport, Energy, Infrastructure and the Information Society (TEN), Baiba Miltoviča, met European Commission executive vice-president Valdis Dombrovskis and set out the section's 2020-2023 work programme, in which green is a priority.
Holistic strategies and harmonisation of action plans for integration could be the way to go, EESC members explain. EU Member States deal with integration policies in widely different ways, based on their specific circumstances and migration histories. Yet the specific needs of women and children striving to overcome discrimination or obstacles to their integration are not always fully taken into consideration. However, the EESC put forward ways to address these shortcomings in an opinion presented at the October plenary session.
Estimates show that almost half of European adults have low or outdated skills, which makes the need for them to upskill and reskill ever more relevant
In an annual conference held entirely online on 3-4 November, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) voiced its determination to help make the Circular Economy Platform a real hub of the collective effort to build a circular economy in Europe.
The EESC warns that EU diversity policies should focus on all aspects of the lives of migrants and ethnic minorities to counter their discrimination, which has been further worsened by the COVID-19 crisis.
Taking into account the disastrous social and economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis, the EESC has adopted two additional opinions on the Annual Sustainable Growth Strategy and on the euro area economic policy.
Securing sustainable access to raw materials, including metals, industrial minerals and construction raw materials, and particularly critical raw materials (CRM), is of huge importance to the European economy, where at least 30 million jobs depend on the availability of raw materials. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is highlighting the importance of digital transformation.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) adopted the opinion From Farm to Fork: a sustainable food strategy at its September Plenary session, following the European Commission's communication on the Farm to Fork Strategy - for a fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly food system. As an integral part of the European Green Deal, this is the first EU strategy claiming to encompass the entirety of the food chain.
