On 18-19 June Latvian Red Cross represented European EAPN-Latvia in Belgium, Leuven within the European Anti Poverty Network (EAPN-Europe) training. EAPN representatives from 24 countries were going through statistics and EU-policies and working on suggestions on how to get poverty context on EU agenda in order to improve the situation of the most deprived and the societies in general.
The association „EAPN-Latvia” was founded on October 9, 2013 by 7 non-governmental organizations: Latvian Red Cross, Association “Skalbes”, IWO – International Women’s Organisation, SOS Children’s Villages Latvia, Riga Alliance of Active Seniors, Latvian Association of Addiction Psychologists and Association “PINS”, and currently has 24 member organisations and 5 associated members. The Association is a continuation of operation of the informal Latvian Anti-Poverty Network, which was founded on November 17, 2009 in Riga.
The aim of the association „EAPN-Latvia” is to work as a part of the European Anti-Poverty Network (EAPN-Europa) to work on socially safe Latvia, free from poverty and social exclusion, and where economic, social and cultural rights are available for all. It works with an aim to foster and improve operational effectiveness of those organizations, which fight poverty and prevent social exclusion, to raise public awareness on issues connected with poverty and social exclusion, to provide opportunities for people living in poverty and social exclusion to improve their wellbeing, to lobby interests of people experiencing poverty and social exclusion and organizations connected with the issue mentioned.