General Information

The Peer Review in Social Inclusion and Social Protection and the Assessment in Social Inclusion are both sub-programmes of PROGRESS – the Community Programme for Employment and Social Solidarity, established in October 2006 by Decision No 1672/2006/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council.

Running throughout the period 2007-2013, PROGRESS aims to provide financial support to the implementation of the EU’s objectives in the fields of employment, social protection and inclusion, working conditions, non-discrimination and gender equality.

At the March 2000 European Council in Lisbon, EU leaders committed to making the Union a competitive economy, with sustainable growth levels, more and better jobs and increased social cohesion by 2010. They also pledged to make a decisive impact on eradicating poverty and social exclusion by the same date.

To do this, as the EU has no legal competence in the area, Member States agreed to co-ordinate their policies for combating poverty and social exclusion on the basis of a process of policy exchanges and mutual learning known as the 'Open Method of Coordination' (OMC). The Peer Review in Social Inclusion and Social Protection and the Assessment by a Network of Independent Experts in Social Inclusion were established to support this process. For more information on Peer Reviews and Network activities please consult the Operational Guide.