Social affairs

Gothenburg has a long term strategy to enhance equality in our city: the City of Gothenburg program for Equal Living and Equal Health 2024-2030 (in Swedish). The program aims at breaking traditional working silos in the city administration to create better possibilities to reach all citizens, with a special focus on children, young people, and high risk groups where the need for intervention is the greatest. This is where efforts can have the greatest impact. 

This long-term strategy includes an action plan to reduce disparities in living conditions and health in Gothenburg and ensure a social sustainable development.

Due to overlap with select principles in the European Pillar of Social Rights, Gothenburg European Office monitors the concrete suggestions proposed under the pillar. When a need is identified, our office also coordinates and leads the lobby activities. To promote exchange of best practicies in social innovation, we organise events in Brussels and sets up meetings for knowledge exchanges with other European cities and actors facing similar social challenges as Gothenburg. The issues vary, but in general we are interested in issues related to harnessing talent, life long learning, skills development, integration of asylum seekers and refugees, inclusion of the Roma population, affordable housing, and combatting gender based violence.

 On the European level, we continuously work for:

• A clear local influence on the structure of EU financial support to tailor allocations to local needs;
• Encouraging upskilling and reskilling initiatives targeting actors at local level; 
• Cities importance for the delivery of result within the European Social pillar;
• Inclusion of the Roma population;
• Social innovations that carry long term impacts;
• Knowledge exchange between local actors in the field of societal inclusion, preventing radicalisation and violent extremism, and combatting homelessness;
• The importance of involving cities in gender equality actions and knowledge exchanges between local actors, paying particular importance to combatting domestic violence, honour related violence and oppression.
  

Currently we are acitively monitoring:

• Future funding opportunities within the structural funds, CERV, Horisont, NEB Facility, and LIFE;
• Networks and exchange opportunities with other local actors;
• Engagements with the European Week of Region and Cities;
• Initiatives related to the Union of Skills;
• EU inclusion strategies, such as the gender equality strategy and the LGBTIQ+ strategy.