Brussels, 04/11/2011 (Agence Europe) - The uncertainties surrounding the referendum in Greece did not prevent the heads of state and/or government gathering in Cannes for the G20 summit to adopt conclusions, on Friday 4 November, that tend to strengthen the social dimension of globalisation, based on the idea that the search for growth is not in contradiction with a higher level of social protection.
“We are determined to strengthen the social dimension of globalisation. Social and employment issues, alongside economic, monetary and financial issues, will remain an integral part of the G20 agenda”, G20 leaders say in their conclusions. Indeed, the heads of state and government of the group of 20 industrialised and emerging countries underline that the social protection systems must be adjusted to adapt to each national situation, which leaves plenty of wriggle room. Nonetheless, it was unanimously acknowledged that investment in social coverage was important, not only as a foundation for the principle of solidarity, but also as a potential lever for reactivating growth. Austerity measures to palliate low economic growth and instability on the financial markets should not therefore be factors that hamper social protection, in order to ensure that the crisis does not affect more people who are already vulnerable, leading to a still further fall in consumer demand.
As French President Nicolas Sarkozy said after the first day's summit: “This is a great novelty - the action plan for growth takes full account of the social dimension of globalisation.” He went on to add that this is the first time that the G20 countries, and especially the emerging countries, state their resolve to set up social security bases in the acknowledgement that these could prove favourable to growth.
This, precisely, was the claim made the day before by representatives of employer and trade union organisations, which met in parallel to the G20 summit, within the B20 and L20 forums. By presenting a joint declaration for the fist time within the framework of a G20 summit, the employer and worker representatives together maintained that the greatest threat weighing on the global economy, and especially the EU's economy, is the loss of confidence and hope that affect both employers and workers, and that it is today necessary to develop a common vision in order to meet all the different aspects of the challenges raised by the employment situation.
The link between the creation of an environment that is propitious for investment and the strengthening of social protection systems was firmly underlined in the joint statement. Another proposal was also made - one that was included in the conclusions of the Cannes summit - that of setting up a G20 working group to tackle the problem of youth employment. Also, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) was designated as the essential instrument for guaranteeing that the fundamental working rights and principles are upheld. (JK/transl.jl)