On 25-26 September 2008, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) will organise the 1st Baltic Organised Civil Society Forum, which will take place in Riga (Latvia) in the Golden Hall of the Latvian Society. This conference will offer to civil society organisations from Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia an opportunity to analyse and exchange best practices with their counterparts from other EU member states.

The panel discussions will be focused mainly on the Baltic business landscape, it's evolutions and perspectives within the EU and with neighbouring countries as well as the flexicurity and social protection.

Participants from the most prominent civil society representatives, will explore avenues for enhancing civil society participation in the decision-making process in the Baltic countries.

The event, that will be opened by Mrs Iveta Purne, Minister of Welfare of Latvia, Mr Vitalijs Gavrilovs, President of the Employers' Confederation of Latvia (LDDK) and Mr Dimitris Dimitriadis, President of the EESC, will also count upon the presence of Mrs Marianne Nati-Stoffel, Secretary General, of the Luxembourg Economic and Social Council and of Mr Ton van der Wijst from the Dutch Economic and Social Council, as two of the main speakers. Mr Peteris Krigers, president of the Free Trade Union Confederation of Latvia (LBAS), and Mrs Rasma Pipike, the Director of Civic Alliance Latvia, will also be part of the panellists who will be present at the event.

The conference will be concluded inter alia by Mrs Laima Liucija Andrikiene, Member of the European Parliament from Lithuania and by Mr Gundars Daudze, speaker of the Saeima.

The  European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) as well as most national Economic and Social Councils of the EU Member States are composed of representatives of employers and employees, but also of representatives of miscellaneous interests, such as farmers, professions, NGOs, environmentalists, consumers, etc. The miscellaneous interests are very often not directly represented in the Tripartite Councils therefore the Forum will give a possibility to discuss how to integrate better this aspect of today's civil society at national level.

The first Baltic Organised Civil Society Forum is part of a broader effort to develop civil society dialogue in the region, such as it was the case for the second Western Balkans Civil Society Forum, organized by EESC, which took place in Ljubljana, on June.

Further information on the programme of the First Baltic Organised Civil Society Forum is available on EESC's website.

About Flexicurity

Flexicurity is a comprehensive approach to labour market policy which combines sufficient flexibility in contractual arrangements – to allow firms and employees to cope with change - with the provision of security for workers to stay in their job, or be able to find a new one quickly with the assurance of an adequate income in between jobs. This is possible through lifelong learning, active labour market policies and high levels of social protection.

The European Commission launched an initiative to help put the EU's flexicurity approach – balancing flexibility in the job market with employment security for workers – into practice at national level.