Press Release: Commission calls on Member States to keep up the momentum in tackling poverty and social exclusion

Tackling poverty and social exclusion is still an urgent political priority for the European Union, says the Commission in a new communication published on 17 December 2003. In its Draft Joint Report on Social Inclusion, it analyses the new generation of National Action Plans (NAPs) on poverty and social exclusion drawn up by the Member States for 2003-2005. Although the percentage of the EU population at risk of poverty has dropped over recent years, there are still over 55 million people and one in five children at risk of poverty. One in ten children lives in a jobless household. Though important progress has been made, there is still much more to be done to achieve the Lisbon goal of making a decisive impact on the eradication of poverty by 2010.

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http://ec.europa.eu/comm/employment_social/soc-prot/soc-incl/joint_rep_en.htm http://ec.europa.eu/comm/employment_social/soc-prot/soc-incl/joint_rep_en.htm

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