Western Balkans' social partners join EU counterparts to boost 'green and fair' transition

“The social element of the green transition needs more attention. It is wrong to ever assume for social dialogue that all has been said and done,” asserted the ETF’s Manuela Prina, Head of Skills Identification and Development Unit, at the opening of the EU’s 2024 Tripartite Exchange Seminar (TES).

The event is taking place at the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) from 29 to 31 May in Brussels with an opening address by President Oliver Röpke who highlighted its role "as a bridge between civil society, social partners, and EU institutions, to foster honest and inclusive debate to advance social Europe and a just transition."

For the first time social partner representatives from countries of the Western Balkan region are participating in the TES gathering, with the support of the European Training Foundation (ETF) and Eurofound. 

“The ETF is forging strong partnerships for social dialogue in the region for a green and just transition,” continued Prina. “It cannot be done in isolation. It needs to be given the proper dedication and time so that everyone has a place around the table.”

TES is an important conduit for strengthening those partnerships.

"This is an exciting opportunity for representatives from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and Serbia to engage with European-level social dialogue, establish and participate in new networks with EU Member States, and deepen their understanding of the importance of social partnership in achieving the objectives of the European Green Deal," said the ETF's Matthias Themel, who is in charge of supporting network building of social partners for skills development in ETF partner countries.

From September to December participants will engage in follow-up online sessions. The social partners from the ETF's partners countries participating in the seminar will be active in other activities being organised by the ETF, including the GLAD and GRETA networks, on governance and building centres of excellence for the green transition respectively, which will have events taking place in the next months.

A full report on the proceedings jointly prepared with the other organising EU agencies (Eurofound, Cedefop, and the European Environment Agency) on the outcome of the meeting will be shortly available on the ETF’s website.