A socially sustainable Nordic Region
If the Nordic Region is to be the most sustainable and integrated region in the world, it must be easy for people and companies to relocate and operate across borders.
A socially sustainable society also means that members of the public feel safe and that society’s resilience to serious crime of various types is robust. The Swedish Presidency will therefore place special focus on co-operation and exchanges of knowledge and information between the Nordic countries about organised crime, welfare fraud, violent extremism and terrorism, as well as the enforcement of sentences. This may include questions about corruption and other unauthorised influence from organised crime, human trafficking, and measures aimed at preventing children and young people from being drawn into the world of gangs.
By sharing insights and experiences about preventing and dealing with serious crime, we can base our work on the best available knowledge. One example is illegal waste management, which is characterised by a combination of huge profits and a low risk of being caught. The Presidency proposes to conduct a comparative study of the preconditions for combating crime in the Nordic countries.
A socially sustainable Nordic Region also requires research- and education systems characterized by equity and high-quality, a single labour market, a dynamic cultural life, language initiatives, and commitment from and participation by young people. Nordic civil society is a driving force for a socially sustainable Nordic Region.
The Swedish Presidency will also focus on initiatives to promote good and equal health for all in the Nordic Region. It will continue the work of preventing and remedying involuntary loneliness and isolation through initiatives such as membership of sports clubs and associations, state leisure cards and putting exercise on prescription. A conference will be arranged on this theme.
Digitalisation and remote solutions provide new opportunities for the Nordic welfare model, particularly in relation to the Nordic Region’s ageing population and sparsely populated areas. The Nordic countries face common issues relating to digital exclusion, access and participation in the digital transformation, and we need to address them together.
The Swedish Presidency will look at the question of remote social and health care. Sweden will also work to strengthen Nordic co-operation on emergency preparedness in social and health care.
Antimicrobial resistance is a global public health problem that is on the rise at an alarming rate. The Swedish Presidency will strive for closer Nordic co-operation in this area. A conference will be held to discuss the work, outcomes and progress that was made during the Swedish EU Presidency in 2023 in this area.
Two focus areas in the labour market will be skills supply and lifelong learning for women and men. The aim is to achieve better joint understanding in order to build knowledge and create inclusive green jobs and educational opportunities. Other priorities will be economic equality and efforts to counter gender segregation in the labour market.
Nordic co-operation on integration will focus on establishing a foothold in the labour-market. This will enhance Nordic knowledge of the validation and assessment of foreign qualifications, digital opportunities and how the parental roles of foreign-born women and men affect their opportunities to establish themselves in the labour market.
Co-operation on research, education and language is an important tool for addressing national and international challenges. The mandate of the Network for Democracy, Inclusion and Social Cohesion (DIS) ends during the Swedish Presidency. A conference will be held on democracy in schools, with a focus on anti-Semitism. The Swedish Presidency will also focus on experience sharing on how to develop and strengthen high-quality education systems characterized by equity and inclusion. Furthermore, the Presidency will highlight Nordic knowledge and mathematics results in the Pisa Study.
Through activities in the education and cultural sectors, the Swedish Presidency will also promote the Nordic Region as a reading region. The revision of the Nordic Language Policy Declaration is currently in its final phase and is expected to be completed during the Swedish Presidency.
Culture is one of the cornerstones of the Nordic sense of community. An inclusive culture promotes democracy, diversity and quality of life. The challenges of recent years, including the pandemic and the international security situation, have ramifications for the Nordic countries and for Nordic cultural co-operation. For this reason, the Swedish Presidency intends to contribute to discussion and exchanges of experience on emergency preparedness in the cultural and media sector, for example, the potential for better protection of cultural heritage in the event of crisis or war.
The Nordic Council of Ministers has been working with the Baltic countries for a long time. There is great potential to extend this co-operation, which covers education and research, culture, health preparedness, medicine, sharing health data and the digitalisation of official bodies in general, knowledge about an ageing population and dementia, cyber-security, illegal working practices, the sustainability of social security and the work of the statistics committees. The Swedish Presidency will pursue opportunities to intensify Nordic-Baltic co-operation in various areas.
The Nordic countries must, as part of their emergency preparedness, be better equipped to produce vaccines. Based on the mapping of Nordic capacity and potential for Nordic co-operation in the development and production of vaccines, the Swedish Presidency will continue the work to find the most appropriate ways of working together in this area.
In terms of gender equality and LGBTIQ issues, Nordic efforts to combat honour-related violence and oppression will be highlighted. A long-term and strategic objective is to strengthen and develop these efforts, including by enhancing knowledge of how the Nordic countries and autonomous areas work with honour-related violence and oppression, included work concerning honour-related violence and oppression against with LGBTIQ people.
The Swedish Presidency will also continue to make visible and promote a Nordic voice in various international forums against the growing resistance to gender equality and the equal rights of LGBTIQ people.
A socially sustainable society also means that members of the public feel safe and that society’s resilience to serious crime of various types is robust.