An EASPD Closed Board meeting was held in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on 16 June 2017, in which Georgi Georgiev, President of the National Alliance for Social Responsibility (NASO), took part in his capacity as a Board member.
The meeting began with a discussion and with all attendees expressing their satisfaction with their participation in the conference. Mr Georgiev put forward a suggestion for more active involvement of employers by giving broader visibility to the economic impact of supported employment not only on the business sector but also on society as a whole. Recommendations were made as to holding follow-up forums.
The main focus of attention at the meeting was the new EASPD strategy based on three key pillars: Information, Innovation, Impact. The first draft was presented by Sabrina Ferraina, EASPD Policy Officer. Mr Georgiev congratulated the EASPD management on the ambitious strategy and expressed his support for its implementation; he proposed to pay more attention to the support of member organisations and to strengthen the role and participation of EASPD in the member organisations’ activities at national level, which is particularly important for the work of the organisations in the Eastern European countries. A broad discussion on the strategy will take place during the EASPD General Assembly in Montenegro in October after which a strategy paper with long-term perspectives will be drafted and accepted.
EASPD announced its 2017 Action Plan for unlocking the European Fund for Strategic Investment (EFSI) for the social services sector. National events were planned for carrying out in some countries of EASPD members. The aim is to promote the EU Investment Plan for the social sector. Together with EASPD, the member organisations will launch such initiatives in Paris, Dublin, Vienna, Helsinki, Brussels and Madrid by the end of 2017. The EASPD Financial Report and the EASPD Annual Report for 2016 were discussed and accepted by the Board members with no comment.