Social Platform represents 43 civil society organisations active in the social sector. In this current context of crisis, with widespread unemployment and rising public deficits, we are looking to the Belgian government to help set the EU on the right course.

2010 is the year of the Europe 2020 strategy, the overarching agenda of the EU for the coming decade. At the time of writing, the outline of the strategy has been agreed. Its implementation, however, will have to be worked out over the next few years. Belgium has a central role to play here, in making sure the right priorities are chosen and that they are backed politically and financially by the EU Institutions and Member States.

Social Platform will be looking to the Belgian government to make a real difference in the fight against poverty and social exclusion. Today, 80 million people in Europe live below the poverty line – a figure equivalent to the population of Germany. The economic crisis engulfing the EU obviously makes this situation worse. The good news is that we have managed to ensure that poverty reduction is one of the Europe 2020 priorities, with a clear target to lift 20 million people out of poverty by 2020. But Member States now need to be convinced of the need to adopt this target. We trust that Belgium will be an ally here and will help us in following through in this fight for human dignity and the cohesion of our societies.

We will be seeking active support from the Belgian government in the adoption of three EU directives aimed at improving people's lives: on working time, maternity leave and non-discrimination. Social Platform is a firm supporter of more EU legislation to consolidate social standards, because a level playing field for workers' rights is vital to ensure that competition in Europe – as well as globally – is based on excellence rather than cheap labour and exploitation.

Social Platform will also be working closely with the Belgian government to organise important events in the social field, like the Third Forum on Social Services of General Interest, the Equality Summit, and a round-table on poverty. We will be counting on the Belgian Presidency to ensure that clear operational conclusions emerge from these events, which could bring us one step closer to a Europe free of poverty and discrimination.