TODAY: Ministerial conference on social services to be held in Prague
On 22 – 23 April Hotel Diplomat in Prague will host the Presidency conference on social services as a tool of mobilisation of the workforce and strengthening of social cohesion.
The conference will be opened by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Labour and Social Affairs Petr Nečas together with Commissioner responsible for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities Vladimír Špidla and High Representatives from Belgium, France and Slovenia.
The objective of this conference is to map out the significant changes that are occurring in the sector of social services, particularly in the context of employment and employability in the given sector. It will emphasise social services as a tool for prevention of social exclusion, as the key to active inclusion of the most vulnerable persons and as an area with increasing employment opportunities. This meeting will also highlight the importance of strengthening and availability of access to social services which are provided to the clients in the natural social environment and it will also include discussion of the role of informal carers
The conference will be divided into three topical panels.
The first panel will be dedicated to social services from the perspective of location, financing and availability in accordance with the types of social services. Financing tools for social services and impacts which these tools could have on the quality and accessibility of these services will also be discussed.
The second panel will address issues related to employment in the social services sector in Europe. The role of public authorities in the organisation and provision of social services will be discussed, as well as the role of providers of social services as employers who are in search of eligible employees. The panel will also address the role of informal carers and their impact on the demand for human resources in the social services sector.
The concluding panel will underscore the role of social services in active inclusion and their potential to enhance the employability and integration of people into the labour market. The conference will be accompanied by the Forum of Examples of Good Practice, in which European and Czech NGOs will be given the opportunity of presenting their activities.
- A press conference attended by Minister of Labour and Social Affairs Petr Nečas and Commissioner responsible for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities Vladimír Špidla will take place immediately before the event opening on 22 April at 13:15 in conference room Krakov 1 in Hotel Diplomat at Evropská 15, Prague 6 – Dejvice. Please arrive at least 15 minutes before the event.
- Further information on the event, including the preliminary programme for media representatives, can be found in the events calendar.
Meeting of the Social Protection Committee (SPC)
On 24 April the meeting of the Social Protection Committee will follow up on the conference. The topic of this meeting will also be the area of social services, as one of the key priorities of the Presidency in the area of employment and social affairs. The Social Protection Committee is an advisory body to the EU Council.
Contact:
- Jana Říhová, spokesperson of the Czech Presidency, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the Czech Republic.
- tel.: +420 221 922 249, mobile: +420 725 761 147 ; e-mail: jana.rihova@mpsv.cz , www.mpsv.cz
Last update: 16.8.2011 15:31
