Poverty Impact Assessment: Luxembourg 27 April 2010 Poverty Impact Assessment: Consultation with Stakeholders: building on the experience of people living in poverty Input: Fintan Farrell, Director EAPN

EAPN Origins  Established in 1990  A network of independent NGOs involved in the fight against poverty and social exclusion (within EU countries, mostly)  To defend the interest of people experiencing poverty and social exclusion in the development of EU policies and programmes

EAPN Membership and Financing  26 National Networks  23 European Organisation  Receives financial support from the European Commission (PROGRESS Programme)

EAPN some achievements 1. Building a participative and sustainable network  Sustained and growing network  Increasing participation of people in poverty  Increasing funding of national and EU networks 2. Impact on EU Policy?  New Articles in the EU Treaties  EU Social Inclusion Strategy (OMC on Social Protection and Social Inclusion  EU Programme to support the strategy (PROGRESS)  EU Recommendation on Active Inclusion (Adequacy of Income, Access to Services, Support for access to employment)  Partnership Principle in Structural Funds  EU Meetings of People Experiencing Poverty  2010 EU Year Against Poverty and Social Exclusion

Poverty Impact Assessment to be effective needs Political Commitment  Poverty Impact Assessment will only be effective if it is part of a larger commitment to promote social and economic rights  It needs to ensure that the fight against poverty and social exclusion goes beyond social policies (tax policies, transport policies….)  It can not be a substitute for proactive social policies to prevent or to combat poverty and social exclusion and to promote greater equality

The EU Context  The Lisbon Treaty  Charter of Fundamental Rights  Fight against poverty and Social Exclusion as an objective (Article 3 TFEU)  Horizontal Social Clause of the Lisbon Treaty (Article 9 TFEU)  Europe 2020 Strategy  Inclusive Growth, Poverty Target, Platform against Poverty  Social Impact Assessment

The need for a comprehensive approach  The need for a positive approach: promoting social inclusion and greater equality. Looking not just at impact on poverty but also impact on wealth.  Needs to be connected to key strategic objectives (identified in National Anti Poverty Policies - NAPs)  Need for a ‘fundamental rights check list’: impact on quality of employment, quality and access to services, impact on effectiveness of social protection systems  Ensure gender and anti discrimination is mainstreamed  Assess impact on specific groups as well as general population.

The need for a participative process  Well designed consolation processes are needed to avoid just becoming a tick box exercise  Involvement of Anti Poverty NGOs and people experiencing poverty will ensure qualitative input and not just quantitative input  Ensure transparency and accountability – need to know what happened to the views expressed  Ensure follow up in implementation and evaluation  Learn form Experience in ‘Developing world’

Way Forward  Build Political Commitment to integrate social objectives  Embed participative mechanisms in design and follow up of Poverty Impact Assessment and ensure feed back  Ensure transparency and accountability for the process.  Need for more exchange based on actual experience.

Building Alliances for 2010