The new issue of Network News, the EAPN magazine, is out! This new issue looks at the preparation of 2010 European Year against Poverty.
The 2010 European Year against Poverty will be all the more special for EAPN as it will mark the deadline the EU set itself to “make a decisive impact on the eradication of poverty” and EAPN’s 20th anniversary.
While acknowledging the possibility of a European Year “fatigue”, EAPN believes 2010 is an opportunity to strengthen dialogue between NGOs and public authorities – especially in those countries where civil dialogue is still lacking or in development.
Providing a clear “hook” for new, stronger coalitions, it will also provide a platform for promoting a better understanding of the reality of poverty and deconstructing well spread stereotypes.
We also hope that 2010 will be an opportunity for the EU and its Member States to go beyond self-celebration, review progress made in the last decade and give a new impetus to the fight against poverty.
The success of the Year will depend to a great extent from national contexts and from the openness of the main political actors. If we want to make 2010 a success, it is crucial for EAPN to see it not as an institutional event, but as our year, as an opportunity for people experiencing poverty to make their voice heard, be visible and put their issues on top of the EU agenda.
Yet this will not happen without a more pro-active attitude, i.e. anticipating rather than following each of the Year’s key steps.