Explanatory Memorandum to COM(2004)493 - European Social Fund - Main contents
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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2004)493 - European Social Fund. |
|---|---|
| source | COM(2004)493  |
| date | 14-07-2004 |
The European Social Fund (ESF) contributes to the economic and social cohesion objective set in article 158 of the EC Treaty, by supporting policies and priorities aimed to achieve progress towards full employment, improve quality and productivity at work, and promote social inclusion and cohesion, in line with the guidelines and recommendations under the European Employment Strategy (EES).
In order to achieve this objective, the ESF needs to address three major challenges: addressing the considerable employment disparities, social inequalities, skills gaps and labour shortages in an enlarged Union; an increasing pace of economic and social restructuring due to globalisation and the development of the knowledge-based economy; and demographic changes, which have resulted in shrinking and ageing workforce.
Enhancing the links between the ESF, the European Employment Strategy and the agreed objectives of the Union in relation to social inclusion and education and training
The links between the Community financial instrument and the Union's policy framework need to be reinforced in the future programming period to better contribute to the employment objectives and targets of the Lisbon strategy. To this end, the ESF should support the policies of Member States which are closely in line with the guidelines and recommendations made under the European Employment Strategy and the agreed objectives of the Union in relation to social inclusion and education and training.
The draft ESF Regulation for 2007-2013 provides a focussed framework for ESF interventions throughout the Union. Under both the Convergence and the Regional Competitiveness and Employment objectives, the ESF will provide support with a view to anticipating and managing economic and social change. Its intervention will focus on four key areas for action endorsed by the European Council: increasing adaptability or workers and enterprises; enhancing access to employment, preventing unemployment, prolonging working lives and increasing participation in the labour market; reinforcing social inclusion by promoting the integration in work of disadvantaged people and combating discrimination; and promoting partnership for reform in the fields of employment and inclusion.
In the least prosperous regions and Member States, the Funds will concentrate on promoting structural adjustment, growth and job creation. To this end, under the Convergence objective, in addition to the above-mentioned priorities, the ESF will also support action to expand and improve investment in human capital, in particular by improving education and training systems, and action aimed at developing institutional capacity and the efficiency of public administrations, at national, regional and local level.
Furthermore, the proposal gives a greater emphasis to the Union's commitment towards the elimination of inequalities between women and men: specific actions addressed to women are combined with a robust gender mainstreaming approach, to increase participation and progress of women in employment.
Equally, the promotion of innovative activities and trans-national co-operation will be fully integrated in the scope of the ESF, and mainstreamed within the national and regional operational programmes. Under both the Convergence and the Regional Competitiveness and Employment objectives, the ESF will give priority to funding trans-national cooperation, including exchanges of experiences and best practices across the Union and joint actions, ensuring where appropriate, coherence and complementarity with other trans-national Community programmes.
Finally, the proposal attaches a particular importance to the promotion of good governance. The involvement of the social partners is of particular importance in the programming and implementation of the Fund priorities and operations. To this end, under the new Convergence objective, social partners will be encouraged to actively participate in capacity building actions and to undertake joint activities in the policy areas where they play a decisive role.