Assessment of the 2008-2010 National Reform Programmes for Growth and Jobs from a social inclusion perspective

Newsletter 2009-1

Publication date : 2009-06-05

Key Conclusions from the Network of Social Inclusion Experts

“Feeding in” & “Feeding out”

The terms “feeding in” and “feeding out” refer to potential complementarities between economic, employment and social policies.

The concepts were developed in 2005, when the Lisbon Agenda was re-focused on promoting “growth and jobs”, based on the premise that this immediate target went hand in hand with promoting social goals.

In this sense, “feeding in” refers to the contribution that social policies can make to achieving higher rates of economic growth and employment, whereas “feeding out” refers to the way in which growth and job policies can serve to combat poverty and social exclusion and improve social cohesion.

Although the distinction is not always clear and some policies fit equally well into both categories, the concepts serve as useful tools for identifying mutually reinforcing effects between economic, employment and social policies.

Despite calls from the 2007 and 2008 Spring European Councils to strengthen the social dimension of Member States’ National Reform Programmes (NRPs) for growth and jobs, progress in this area has remained limited.

2009 reporting schedule of the Network of Independent Social Inclusion Experts

In December 2008, EU Social Affairs ministers endorsed¹ the Commission’s Recommendation on the active inclusion of people excluded from the labour market², acknowledging the need for all countries to implement a comprehensive strategy based on the integration of three policy pillars, namely: adequate income support, in recognition of people’s basic right to sufficient resources; inclusive labour markets, where people are given assistance to reenter and stay in employment; and access to quality services such as training, housing support, health and child care.

In their conclusions, ministers underscored the urgency of implementing the active inclusion strategy to counter the negative consequences of the economic and financial crisis. The proper monitoring and evaluation of national active inclusion strategies is therefore crucial.

For this reason, a key theme that the EU Network of Independent Experts will analyse in 2009 is the first pillar of the active inclusion strategy and, in particular, Minimum Income Schemes, as the economic downturn has highlighted the importance of social safety nets. Another important focus for the Network will be the impact of the economic and financial crisis on poverty and social exclusion and the extent and effectiveness of governments’ efforts to protect those at risk.

^{1 Council Conclusions on Common active inclusion
principles to combat poverty more effectively of 17 December 2008.
2 Commission Recommendation 2008/867/EC of 3
October 2008.}

An overview¹ of the 27 national reports conducted by the EU Network of Independent Experts on Social Inclusion to assess each NRP for the 2008-2010 period was published in April. Drawing out core lessons across the EU, it recognises that there has been some strengthening of the linkages between the EU Growth and Jobs Strategy and the EU “Open Method of Coordination for Social Protection and Social Inclusion” (OMC), but notes that this is only true for a small number of Member States and that, in most cases, progress has been modest.

Only very few Member States have made satisfactory arrangements to promote, monitor and assess the synergies between economic and employment policies and social protection and inclusion policies. In general, there continues to be a lack of coordination between all these policies, and the preparation of the National Reform Programmes and of the 2008-2010 National Strategy Reports on Social Protection and Social Inclusion (NSRSPSIs) tend to remain as two separate exercises. This has resulted in only a very minor strengthening of the social dimension in NRPs.

NRPs and Feeding out

Undoubtedly, employability and access to employment are the areas where the aim to promote greater social inclusion is most evident. In several Member States, experts note real efforts to target specific disadvantaged groups, such as jobless households, working poor, lone parents, people with a disability and immigrants and ethnic minorities. However, there is only limited evidence of measures specifically aimed at creating jobs for them.

What’s more, despite a number of important initiatives, the “feeding out” effects of economic and employment policies on social inclusion and cohesion are most often only partially addressed. For example, measures to promote labour market flexibility are generally not sufficiently balanced out with measures to improve job security; employment policies often fail to address the problem of in-work poverty; fiscal consolidation policies, aimed at slashing government deficits by modernising social protection systems, often largely ignore potential impacts on social cohesion and inclusion; the liberalisation of key services, such as energy utilities, has not always been accompanied by appropriate measures to prevent negative consequences on social inclusion; and measures to improve access to housing, financial and banking services and the internet still often fail to pay sufficient attention to the poorest and most vulnerable.

NRPs and Feeding in

In terms of “feeding in”, experts noted that most Member States’ NRPs emphasise the potential of education, training and lifelong learning measures to contribute to growth and jobs objectives. However, the social inclusion impact of such measures is often not considered.

Conversely, while measures aimed at promoting gender equality and at combating discrimination and child poverty are recognised as key to improving social inclusion, their potential impact on economic growth is still considered only too rarely in most NRPs.

Conclusions

In its overview, the Network Core Team stresses the importance – especially in these times of economic and financial crisis – of recognising the contribution that social inclusion policies can make to economic and employment goals as well as the contribution that jobs and growth policies can make to social cohesion and inclusion goals in order to avoid an increasing number of people from being pushed into poverty and social exclusion.

It adds that efforts should build on the three-pillar approach to active inclusion recently agreed at EU level (see below), in view of its potential for accelerating the achievement of economic and employment goals as well as social goals.

It further suggests that the Commission could establish clear guidance on how to create mutually reinforcing synergies between strategies aimed at fighting child poverty and those aimed at boosting economic growth and employment. EU guidance would also be useful to assist Member States with the development of effective social impact assessment procedures, the mainstreaming of social objectives into all pertinent policy domains, the consistent involvement of relevant stakeholders and the proper coordination of government policies.

Lastly, the report states that the Commission could usefully document the growing number of positive examples of feeding in and feeding out identified in Member States, as a basis for the exchange of learning and good practice.

¹ Synthesis Report: “The Assessment of the Extent of Synergies between Growth and Jobs Policies and Social Inclusion Policies across the EU as evidenced by the 2008-2010 National Reform Programmes: Key Lessons”, Hugh Frazer and Eric Marlier, Social Inclusion Policy and Practice, CEPS/ INSTEAD, 24 March 2009.

http://www.peer-review-social-inclusion.eu/network-of-independent-experts/2008/second-semester-2008

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