Legislative act: Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament of 25 January 2006, "Investing in people". [COM(2006) 18 - not published in the Official Journal].

Objectives

Both the Millennium Development Goals and the "European Consensus" on development policy strongly commit the EU to the promotion of human and social development. With this aim, the DCI's thematic program "Investing in human resources" (also known as "Investing in people") complements the country and regional strategies for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.

Six different areas of action:

1. Poverty diseases and sexual health;
2. Gender equality;
3. Education;
4. Employment and social cohesion;
5. Culture.
6. Young people and children

(1) In order to ensure access to health care the program sets out to:

• Mobilize global public goods to combat and prevent diseases;
• Support innovative health measures;
• Improve the regulatory framework;
• Increase political and public awareness and education;
• Improve technical resources.

(2) Gender equality is already the subject of country-based and regional actions which the new thematic program is intended to complement by:

• Supporting the various programs that contribute to achieving the objectives of the Beijing Declaration;
• Backing the efforts of civil society organizations;
• Helping to include the gender perspective in statistics.

(3) In the field of access to education, the measures taken to support national programs consist mainly in:

• Supporting low-income countries for the development of successful education policies;
• Promoting reciprocal learning via international exchanges of experience and good practice;
• Promoting transnational university co-operation and the mobility of students and researchers at international level;
• Developing a broader framework for monitoring and data assessment;
• Promoting schooling for marginalized and vulnerable children.

(4) To reduce socio-economic inequalities, the new thematic program is intended to focus on social cohesion and employment in three different ways:

• Promoting of the "decent work for all" agenda through global and multinational initiatives;
• Supporting initiatives to promote the improvement of working conditions as well as adjustment to trade liberalization;
• Promoting the social dimension of globalization and the EU's experience.

(5) In the field of culture, the new thematic program aims to:

• Bring together peoples and cultures on an equal footing, while preserving diversity;
• Promote greater international co-operation to fully exploit the economic potential of the cultural sector.

(6) Finally, the thematic program will place the interests of young people and children at the centre of European action, by:

• Drawing countries' attention to children and youth issues and enhancing their capacity to address these issues in external action;
• Supporting regional, inter-regional and global initiatives in key areas, such as preventing all forms of child labor, human trafficking and sexual violence;
• Supporting the youth employment network;
• Supporting efforts to promote young people and children in situations and regions where bilateral co-operation has limitations;
• Supporting the monitoring of data, the development of policies, the exchange of information, awareness-raising campaigns and innovative initiatives in all areas that affect young people and children.

Sources:
http://www.euroresources.org/guide_to_population_assistance/european_community.htm
http://www.2007-2013.eu/by_scope.php
http://europa.eu/scadplus/leg/en/s05031.htm