High-Level Conference on Social Rights (Chișinău, Republic of Moldova, 19 March 2026)

As prepared for delivery

Excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Let me begin by wholeheartedly thanking the Republic of Moldova and the Council of Europe for organising this timely conference.

The European Social Charter is aptly referred to as the Social Constitution of Europe.

It serves as the foundation of our everyday dignity, by asserting fundamental rights to housing, health, and fair employment for every citizen, with a particular duty of care toward the most vulnerable.

Today, as we mark 65 years of the Charter and 70 years of the Council of Europe Development Bank – the social development bank for Europe – we celebrate the enduring bond between these two pillars: the Charter providing the overarching vision and the legal framework, and the Bank as the financial arm to make such vision a reality.

We meet at a time of profound fracture. A global geopolitical shock is reshaping international relations, eroding cooperation and disavowing the rule-based order that underpinned decades of rising prosperity and welfare in Europe.

As nationalism and protectionism return and war is rampant, their effects are already strongly felt with the human tragedies and a cost-of-living crisis hitting everybody, and disadvantaged people the hardest.

Disparities widen and trust in institutions wanes, corroding our social fabric. The solidarity upheld by the European Social Charter is challenged.

Ladies and gentlemen, when cohesion is tested, social investment becomes decisive.

Europe’s resilience hinges on a mutual sharing of risks and opportunities. Social investment – in housing, health, education – is the lynchpin of this model. It supports people and their communities, while helping them adjust to shocks.

At a time when security urgencies absorb more fiscal space, the Council of Europe Development Bank stands more determined than ever to turn our shared social vision into tangible results – especially at the local level where people and social services meet.

Europe can count on the resolve of the Council of Europe’s financial arm to help achieve the social cohesion it needs and to safeguard social rights for all.

Thank you.