The participating organisations of the COE-FRA-ENNHRI-EQUINET Collaborative Platform on Social and Economic Rights* today issued a joint statement addressed to the government representatives attending the High-Level Conference on the European Social Charter (4 July 2024, Vilnius, Lithuania) to reaffirm their full commitment to the protection and implementation of social rights as guaranteed by the European Social Charter system, in line with the Reykjavik Declaration adopted by the Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe in May 2023.

The joint statement, endorsed by the Platform at its 14^th meeting (1 July 2024, Vilnius, Lithuania), emphasises the crucial importance of social rights in ensuring the well-being and dignity of all individuals. It underlines the need for renewed efforts to uphold and advance these rights in the face of ongoing socio-economic challenges. 

The statement calls on governments to unequivocally reaffirm their commitment to the European Social Charter, a cornerstone of social justice and human dignity in Europe. It suggests ways to deliver on these commitments by ratifying the Revised European Social Charter and accepting additional provisions. It points in particular to the right to housing and the right to protection from poverty and social exclusion as fundamental human rights that are essential for the enjoyment of other human rights and for the overall well-being of individuals and families. The statement also calls on governments to accept the collective complaints procedure as an effective good governance mechanism and to strengthen dialogue and cooperation between the Charter organs and States Parties, as well as among all relevant stakeholders, including National Human Rights Institutions, Equality Bodies and civil society organisations.

* The establishment of the COE-FRA-ENNHRI-EQUINET Collaborative Platform on Social and Economic Rights is the result of the joint conference of the Council of Europe, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), the European Network of National Human Rights Institutions (ENNHRI) and the European Network of Equality Bodies (EQUINET), which took place in October 2013 in Vienna. The conference set the scene for closer cooperation among national networks and between national and international bodies for advancing social and economic rights and socio-economic equality.