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Hon. Celestino Corbacho, Minister of Labour and Immigration
Mr. Laszlo Andor, European Union Commissioner Hon. Ministers of Social Security from the European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean Other Distinguished Delegates Representatives of the Media Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen I wish first of all to congratulate the Hon. Celestino Corbacho, Minister of Labour and Immigration, for the hosting of this Meeting on Social Security Systems Coordination in the context of activities, which Spain will undertake or promote during its Presidency of the European Union. This Meeting clearly signals that Spain not only understands the historical ties between Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean, but also desires to ensure that these ties are strengthened and expanded, in particular in areas of great importance to the citizens of our respective countries and regions. As Secretary-General of CARIFORUM, the Caribbean Forum of African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) States, I welcome this opportunity to address you at this Meeting which comes at the beginning of what is a significant series of meetings between Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean, here in Madrid over the next week or so. Mr. Chairman, it is most appropriate that we begin this series of meetings with this topic as it is my firm belief that social security is a critical area which impacts on almost every aspect of the cycle of life through health benefits before birth to death and survivors’ benefits and during working life through unemployment benefits, worker compensation and pensions in particular. It clearly focuses on people and their welfare and deserves concentrated attention, not only over the next two days but for the foreseeable future particularly in the face of the challenges posed by the recent global economic and financial crises. This Meeting on Social Security System Coordination is therefore timely, coming as it does as the world struggles to emerge from those crises which have wreaked severe social and economic havoc in our respective countries and regions. Indeed Social Security systems were not immune to the impact of the crises and several have been adversely affected by plummeting stock markets which threatened pension plans in particular. For us in the Caribbean most of our systems initially experienced losses, but most of them recovered to pre-crisis levels by the end of November 2009. This was particularly important in the context of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) in which the Agreement on Social Security, which came into effect on 1 April 1997, plays a critical role. This Agreement is a key element in the movement of workers within the Market as it ensures their social security benefits are collated in each Member State where they work. As one of the background documents to this Meeting states “In a global interrelated context, where migration flows need to be managed properly, where workers movements along their whole professional life are going to progressively affect more than two countries, and where social security coordination developments are being associated with regional or sub-regional integration processes, it is of the utmost importance to share all the existent coordination experiences.” Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen, other challenges as a result of the global crises remain. In most countries no unemployment benefits are provided, but rising unemployment levels and increasing poverty are forcing Governments in cooperation with social security systems to look for innovative ways to prevent a further downwards social slide. In St. Vincent and the Grenadines, for example, the Government in cooperation with the National Insurance Service opted to introduce a non-contributory, means-tested benefit to assist the elderly to maintain a certain standard of living and as such put them in a better position to cope with the impact of the crisis. It is in the sharing of such experiences that we can learn from each other and it is my hope that this conference can benefit from that kind of co-operation. This Meeting is also timely in light of the implications for social security arrangements, given the on-going issue of migration and developments within the regions and between the regions, such as the new regulations on social security coordination in Europe, which entered into force on 1 May, 2010 and the Ibero-American Multinational Convention on Social Security, which was signed in November 2007 in Chile. In the coming hours and days we will without doubt hear more about these developments, but let me indicate from the onset that I believe these developments are a recognition of the fact that in our globalised world, migration, whether in the context of regional integration or not, is a phenomenon that is here to stay. The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) indicates on their website that “there are now about 192 million people living outside their place of birth, which is about three per cent of the world’s population.” It is crucial therefore that given the magnitude of migration in our contemporary world, strong attempts must be made to address all problems associated with migration, including those related to social security. The earlier mentioned efforts in the European Union and between Spain, Portugal, Andorra and Latin America are important steps in the right direction, because they immediately impact on the social protection and social welfare of migrants. I am aware that in the Caribbean a number of countries have signed bilateral agreements with European countries to ensure some measure of protection for their citizens, but much needs to be done. It is therefore my hope that this Meeting will set in motion a move towards a comprehensive social security framework between our regions. I wish to end by once again congratulating Spain and in particular, Minister Celestino Corbacho on this important initiative and I do look forward to the sharing of experiences during our deliberations, of course with the ultimate aim to improve the social welfare and social protection of our citizens through increased cooperation in the area of social security.
I thank you. |
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