Annual Report 2013: Taking small steps in the right direction

We are proud to present Social Platform’s Annual Report for 2013: a short reflection on our many activities throughout the year.

2013 saw the continuation of the economic and social crisis that started 6 years ago. By the end of the year Europe saw a very slight return to economic growth (in terms of GDP), however after many years of austerity measures and policies focused solely on growth and jobs there has been no lessening of the social crisis.

In fact the social crisis has continued to grow. By 2013, almost 125 million people were living in poverty and almost 11% of people were without a job.  Social divergences continued to increase (not only within member states but also between them, and not just those experiencing austerity) and inequalities continued unabated. Throughout Europe we have seen a growing alienation and disconnect between leaders and society and a rise in social tensions.  We have also witnessed a marginalization of civil society in the decision making process over the last number of years

Although our EU leaders may welcome this slow return to growth we, civil society, know that the harsh effects of the social crisis will take a lot longer to recover from.

It is easy to get disheartened in such a climate and to feel that this continuing uphill struggle is perhaps just too big a battle. The current environment seems inhospitable to civil society when our institutional structures, laws and policies continue to put growth and economics above the well-being of people. If our leaders continue to think only about money while ignoring the voice of the people then it may seem that our vision of a socially just Europe will continue to be just outside of our reach. 

And yet we must not overlook the small steps that we are taking in the right direction. As our report shows in 2013 the work of Social Platform (and others in civil society) managed to make meaningful advancements towards a Europe that will be able to recover not just from the economic crisis but also the social crisis.

These achievements included:

  • An EU budget (for 2014-2020) that recognizes social objectives – for the first time the European Social Fund includes “promoting social inclusion and combating poverty (and any discrimination)” as one of its four thematic objectives. 20% of the fund must also be allocated to investment priorities under this objective. These resources can help reverse unacceptably high rates of poverty and unemployment if implemented properly.
  • In 2013 for the first time ever we brought two policy strands closer together – migration and poverty. We highlighted the poverty trap of migration at the European Platform Against Poverty and Social Exclusion (EPAP) convention and showed how anti-poverty strategies need to also take into account the social exclusion of migrants.
  • 2013 also saw our call for household income, inequality, poverty, unemployment and young people who are not in education, employment or training to be included in the Scoreboard of Employment and Social Indicators (which has been put forward as a tool for the social dimension of the Economic and Monetary Union). This was our minimum requirement for the economic and financial dimension of the EMU to start to be rebalanced with a genuine social dimension.
  • In 2013 our campaign to ensure that the specific mission of social, health and other services provided directly to the person are safeguarded in internal market rules was also successful. The new Public Procurement Directive included many of our demands which will ensure that profit making does not prevail over the public interest. 

We invite you to read our report and to reflect on these and our other achievements yourself.

We must take heart from these successes and continue our good work. We must also however find new ways and methods to aid our fight.  That is why in 2013 after many months of reflection, shared thinking and refinement we launched our new Strategic Orientation to guide us through the next 7 years. We set ourselves 6 key objectives which will focus our work and help us achieve our vision of a socially just and cohesive Europe based on our values. Our strategic objectives include: socio-economic justice, people centered services, equality for all, quality employment, social protection and civil dialogue. All of our work will be underpinned by a human rights based approach.  These long-term objectives will require a coordinated approach and we will work closely across our 6 objectives to ensure that our efforts are aligned to have the maximum impact.

As Social Platform we know that the importance of civil society will not diminish over the coming years. It will be crucial that we continue to empower and inform our members and societies to strengthen our fight for good governance and social justice. In 2014 and over the next number of years we look forward to continuing to serve as a voice for the people and to working closely with our members to implement this new orientation. Together we must ensure that the voice of civil society, and the people we represent, is not suppressed. And together we must ensure that the space in which we express our concerns does not shrink but instead develops so that we can finally see true participatory democracy.