ENLARGEMENT HIGH-LEVEL FORUM

On 24 th October, the EESC will welcome some 100 Enlargement Candidate Members (ECMs) in the Enlargement High-Level Forum "Towards  successful EU Enlargement" jointly organised with the European Commission back-to-back to Plenary. This forum will gather high-level representatives from the European Commission, Member States, Candidate Countries and potential candidate countries. The event will highlight the role of social dialogue and civil society in progressing on the accession path, including the importance of upholding the EU’s fundamental values. It will also be an occasion to take stock of what the EESC has achieved so far and what direction  the project of ECMs will take in the next months.

Webstream

PROGRAMME

08:30 Registration and group picture

09:00-10:45 Opening session: the Enlargement High-Level Forum

• Oliver Röpke, European Economic and Social Committee President
• Moderator: Barbara Moens, Chief EU Correspondent at Politico, Brussels
  • Nicolas Schmit, EU Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights
  • Olivér Várhelyi, EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement
  • Niki Kerameus, Minister of Labour and Social Security of Greece
  • Naida Nišić, Minister of Labour and Social Welfare of Montenegro
  • Rolf Schmachtenberg, State Secretary of the Federal Ministry for Labour and Social Affairs of Germany
  • Albana Koçiu, Minister of Health and Social Protection of Albania
  • Aleksandra Gajewska, State Secretary of the Ministry for Family, Labour and Social Policy of Poland
• DISCUSSION

10:45-12:00 Session I: A vibrant civil society as a pre-requisite for successful enlargement

• Scene setter: Elise Bernard, Head of Studies, Foundation Robert Schuman, Paris-Brussels
• Moderator: Séamus Boland, Civil Society Organisations' Group President, EESC
  • Alexandrina Najmowicz, Secretary General, European Civic Forum, France-Belgium
  • Ivan Cooper, CEO of the Wheel (National association of charities, community and voluntary organisations and social enterprises), Ireland
  • Biljana Spasovska, Executive Director of the Balkan Civil Society Development Network, North Macedonia
  • Ayşe Yürekli, Senior Policy Advisor for European Affairs of the Women Entrepreneurs Association (KAGIDER), Türkiye
• DISCUSSION

12:00-13:15 Session II: Social dialogue – exchange of good practices and lessons learned - the way forward

• Scene setter: Kostas Papadakis, Senior Specialist at the Social Governance, Labour Relations and Governance of Work Branch, GOVERNANCE, ILO
• Moderator: Lucie Studničná, Workers' Group President
  • Kinga Grafa, Deputy Director General of Lewiatan, Poland
  • Suzana Radulović, Secretary General of the Employers Federation, Montenegro
  • Igor Zubcu, President of the National Trade Union Confederation, Moldova
  • Josef Středula, President of the Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions (CMKOS), Czech Republic
• DISCUSSION

Lunch -Buffet

14:45-16:00 Session III: The role of social partners in fostering a competitive, green and digital transition

• Scene setter: Stavroula Demetriades, Senior Research Manager, EUROFOUND
• Moderator: Stefano Malia, Employers' Group President
  • Mariya Mincheva, EESC member and Vice President, Bulgarian Industrial Association (BIA), Bulgaria
  • Oleksandr Yavorsky, Head of Competitiveness Department, Federation of Employers, Ukraine
  • Čedanka Andrić, President of the Independent Trade Union Confederation, Serbia
  • Fernando Luján de Frías, Vice Secretary General for Trade Union Policy of the Union of Workers (UGT), Spain
• DISCUSSION

16:00-16:15 Closing Remarks

• Short intervention by Oliver Röpke, President of EESC and Mario Nava, Director General of Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion of the European Commission