Brussels, 23/05/2005 (Agence Europe) - According to the European Anti Poverty Network (EAPN) the Commission's non-paper on the “Community Strategic Guidelines on Cohesion Policy in support of growth and jobs”, which was discussed at the informal ministerial in Luxembourg by ministers for regional policy (see other article), “fails to acknowledge the crucial context of the high levels of poverty and social exclusion in the European Union”. EAPN says the non-paper re-situates the Community Strategic Guidelines in the context of the revised Lisbon strategy but “misses a sense of social and environmental responsibility, which could unbalance the Structural Funds and send the wrong signals to Member States”. The EAPN states that a growth strategy failing to give equal and balanced importance to social and environmental considerations may well lead to increased inequality and levels of poverty. On social inclusion, the EAPN says that “the guidelines fail to give weight to or even acknowledge the experience of the European Union in promoting social inclusion through the Open Method of Coordination”. The EAPN therefore asks “whether the guidelines are truly complementary to existing Union policies”. With regard to governance, the EAPN believes that while the Commission recognizes the importance of building the capacity of governmental actors in the Structural Funds, it fails to appreciate the significance of similar measures for civil society and non-government organizations. The EAPN states that,” While the guidelines acknowledge the role of civil society and NGOs as Structural Fund partners, which is important, they fail to understand the logic of also supporting and developing their capacities and capabilities so as to make such partnership effective”.