Agenda

ELTI Secretary-General, Helmut von Glasenapp participated in the European Parliament Seminar on “InvestEU & the Economy of Well-being: making the most of local know-how”, on Wednesday 4 December 2019. Hosted by Mr. Alfred Sant, Member of the European Parliament and the Steering Board for Social Infrastructure investment and co-organised together with European Association of Service Providers for Persons with Disabilities (EASPD) and the Lifelong Learning Platform, this joint event brought together the main representatives of the social services, health, education, social and affordable housing and ageing sectors at European level in order to discuss concrete plans for ensuring there is sufficient support for the development and financing of quality local social projects via the InvestEU programme.

Context

The Steering Board for Social Infrastructure Investment brings together the main representatives of the social services, health, education, social and affordable housing and ageing sectors at European level. Together, we represent thousands of both public and private organisations providing services which enable millions of people in Europe to access their human and social rights, to live healthier, to be empowered and to live in dignity, as well as the largest European network of organisations of and for older persons.

Many of these services require investment to help deliver more and better services across the continent. InvestEU thus comes as an opportunity to boost both public and private investment into quality social projects. Whilst the general orientation of the proposed InvestEU program is a significant improvement on the European Fund for Strategic Investments, more work is needed to ensure the InvestEU’s framework meets the real investment demand from organisations on-the-ground, active in the social field. In other words, it is crucial to raise awareness, boost the capacity of the social, health, education and housing sectors to develop investable propositions and to clarify how this can function at local level.

This Joint Event, which is part of the Lifelong Learning Week 2019, will bring together policy-makers, public & private investors and the social sectors to discuss concrete plans for ensuring there is sufficient support for the development and financing of quality local social projects via InvestEU.

Programme

Panel I - Practical implementation of InvestEU’s Social Investment & Skills Window

Speakers

Moderator

Ms. Brikena Xhomaqi, Director, Lifelong Learning Platform

Followed by a Q&A session

Panel II – InvestEU & Capacity-Building for local project promoters

Speakers

Moderator

Mr. Alfonso Lara Montero, CEO, European Social Network

Followed by a Q&A session

Concluding Recommendations

Mr. Thomas Bignal, Policy Advisor, European Association of Service providers for Persons with Disabilities (EASPD)

Final Remarks