On 23 April 2021 annual European Union Information Providers’ Forum was held in an online format for the second consecutive year. Discussions on current challenges for the EU focused on the topic “Recovery and Resilience”, presenting a brief outline of challenges related to overcoming the pandemic in the near future and of development priorities.
In her speech opening the forum, the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica, informed the participants about EU-related issues which currently affect Latvia, the measures taken at the EU level to more swiftly and effectively overcome the pandemic, including the accessibility of vaccines, the initiative to introduce a Digital Green Certificate, and EU funding for economic recovery.
The Parliamentary Secretary noted that during these times when we are facing numerous challenges, the spread of COVID-19 continues to influence the daily lives of every person and much depends on how people act and behave in the vaccination effort, which is the key to our door out from the pandemic. We expect that the Digital Green Certificate, which is intended to be an EU-level document certifying that a vaccination has taken place, the test result is negative, or the fact that a person has already recovered from the coronavirus. The Digital Green Certificate will facilitate safe and free travel or access to public events on a larger scale.
Speaking about long-term priorities, the Parliamentary Secretary also highlighted the impact of climate change in the housing, energy and transport sectors, as well as the need for a continued focus on security and digitalisation matters. As underlined by Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica at the opening of the event, active discussions are expected later this year on the development of the EU’s social rights pillar and, consequently, an equal and fair approach to safe working conditions and to services in education, health care and social protection.
The Conference on the Future of Europe will be inaugurated this coming 9 May on Europe Day. Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica called on the participants of the forum to actively engage in the digital multilingual platform of the Conference, where EU citizens can take part already since 19 April and express their opinions on issues of high importance for the EU.
The activity of the Latvian people will determine the extent to which the matters that are vital to us will be highlighted and heard during the Future of Europe debate, including the diverse security challenges, strengthening resilience against hybrid threats and disinformation, and challenges caused by social inequality, the Parliamentary Secretary said.
Remarks to the participants were also delivered by Marta Rībele, the Head of the European Parliament Liaison Office in Latvia, and Zane Petre, the Head of the European Commission Representation in Latvia. Issues related to health, economy and wellbeing in the near and more distant future, and the challenges and opportunities of digital transition were analysed during the forum. In a session moderated by Andris Gobiņš, the President of “European Movement – Latvia”, the concept of the recovery of human dignity and social justice was presented by the Chair of the Constitutional Court, Sanita Osipova.
Background information
The European Union Information Providers Forum has been held since 2008, and it is organised by the European Movement in Latvia in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Office of the European Parliament in Latvia and the representation of the European Commission in Latvia.
The event, which has now become a tradition, is held twice a year and it brings together the providers of EU-related information – EU information contacts at national and local governments, representatives from EU Information Points (ESIP), Europe Direct Information Centres (EDIC), people heading EU information networks, opinion leaders, members of the European clubs in schools, the media, NGOs, and the private sector.