Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union

Meeting Political and Security Committee

The European Territorial Cooperation is celebrating its 20th anniversary. In honour of this occasion, the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union represented by Wallonia and in association with the European Commission and the INTERACT programme, is organising a high-level conference dedicated to the future of this cooperation.

The Egmont Palace will form the elegant setting for the informal ECOFIN Council meeting. Points on the agenda will include the creditworthiness of public finances, the trans-Atlantic agenda for the reform of the financial sector and preparation for the important meetings of the G20 and the IMF.

Informal Meeting Political and Security Committee (PSC)

The Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP) is responsible for reviewing applications from persons or companies seeking ‘orphan medicinal product designation’ for products they intend to develop for the diagnosis, prevention or treatment of life-threatening or very serious conditions that affect not more than 5 in 10.000 persons in the European Union.

The Paediatric Committee (PDCO) is responsible for providing scientific opinions on the development of medicines for use in children, in accordance with the Reguation (EC) 1901/2006. The main responsibility of the PDCO is to assess the content of paediatric investigation plans and adopt opinions on them. This includes the assessment of applications for a full or partial waiver and assessment of applications for deferrals.

Animal health strategy: progress to date

The Committee for Medicinal Products for Veterinary Use (CVMP) is responsible for providing scientific opinions on all questions concerning veterinary medicinal products, in accordance with Regulation N° 726/2004/EC and concerning maximum residue limits, in accordance with Regulation N° 470/2009/EC. 

The Scientific Advice Working Party (SAWP) is a Working Party of the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP), in charge of Scientific Advice and Protocol Assistance for orphan medicinal products.

Brussels’ universities, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), in collaboration with the Brussels-Europe Liaison Office, are organising a masterclass about Brussels for European civil servants. The primary aim of the project is to give them a broader insight into Brussels and its socio-geographic, economic and political cultures and structures. In this way, European civil servants will be encouraged to widen their perspectives and to obtain a view of the city in which they live and work.

On Thursday 30 September 2010 government officials and entrepreneurs got together for the fourth time in the heart of the European district in Brussels to celebrate 'Brabant Day'.

This conference is being organised by the Institute for Environment and Sustainability (IES). Its goals are to analyse the political and economic factors that enable illegally collected natural resources to be sold on the European market and to better understand the impact on the development, the environment, and the stability of exporting regions.

A pioneer in the Youth Information sector, Infor Jeunes Bruxelles Nord Ouest has spent four decades bringing pluralist information to various young audiences. Infor Jeunes Laeken is on the periphery of what has been agreed shall be called the "poor crescent" of Brussels. Among the large majority of young people, and particularly those from working class backgrounds, Europe tends to be reduced to a single currency and a commonplace repeated a thousand times "Brussels, capital of Europe". And that's about all.

To mark the Belgian presidency of the EU Council during the second half of 2010, the Virtual Resource Centre for Knowledge about Europe — CVCE, a public institution based in Luxembourg, is dedicating a subject portfolio as part of its digital library based on the historical relations between Belgium and the European Community since the Second World War. The portfolio wholly participates in the development of new methods of acquiring knowledge (research and education) by using new information technologies. It will provide all historical documents and original interviews with participants and direct observers in Belgium during the process of European unification.

For 25 years, the FIFF has put on a true extravaganza: screenings of French-language films, special sessions, favourites, professional workshops, educational activities, cinema tutorials, concerts, blind tests, competitions, animations, soirées … something for everyone! Over eight days more than 30,000 spectators will gather in Namur for a fitting celebration of French-language cinema. See you in October

Jazz Bruges chooses resolutely for European jazz of high artistic quality.This fifth edition will again take place in three halls.For the first time, we will welcome you every afternoon in the attic of Memling in Sint-Jan, followed by a piano recital in the Kamermuziekzaal (chamber music hall) of the Concertgebouw (concert hall) and two or three concerts in the Concertzaal.

At the time of his birth, the stars foretold that Sigismund would topple his father King Basil from the throne and become a bloody tyrant. To prevent the terrible prediction from coming to pass, Basil locked his son deep inside a tower. Will Sigismund succeed in overcoming the brutality of his nature? Galin Stoev (‘Oxygen’ and ’Genesis No2’) tackles this baroque drama with an eye to marrying classical material with contemporary sensibility.

An exhibition composed of photographs and films produced by students in Brussels, France, Austria, Poland and Spain who, thanks to the European CULTURE Programme, went off and discovered the ancient palace of Brussels, as well as châteaux in Versailles, Chambord, Schönbrunn, Wilanow and Madrid. A useful discovery-tour tool will be provided for visitors to hone their appreciation of the materials and building techniques of the archaeological site and the Royal Palace.

The René Magritte Museum, situated in the painter’s house in Jette, is putting on an exhibition devoted to Belgian abstract art to coincide with the centenary of non-representational art in Europe (1910-2010). Around 40 masterpieces give a fine overview of representatives of this movement in Belgium, from the 1920s to the present day. Activities organised on the fringes of the exhibition will emphasise the exciting cross-fertilisation between these artists and other European countries.

Every five years, Bruges is the setting for a major cultural city festival. This time creative people from the area and artists from Central Europe are taking over the city. For about four months 'Brugge Centraal' will draw people to an intense and varied selection of concerts, films, stage shows and exhibitions. The programme balances East and West, past and present, confrontation and harmony. The modern art trail 'Luc Tuymans: A Vision of Central Europe' and the historic exhibition 'Van Eyck to Dürer' are the stars of this major event.

100 Years of abstract art in Belgium is organised by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) in cooperation with the René Magritte Museum in Jette (Brussels) in the context of the Belgian EU presidency. It introduces five Belgian artists with a clear focus on covering different provinces of Belgium. They represent the geometric approach in abstraction - also known as constructive or concrete art.

Brussels enjoys a unique position as the capital of Europe. However, we have noticed that only a small number of young people in Brussels are aware of what this European presence means for Brussels and what repercussions it will have. That is why, on the occasion of the Belgian presidency, the Brussels-Europe Liaison Office has proposed an exceptional project to the schools: a rally in the European quarter for all students in the final two years of secondary school, with the aim of informing them about 'Europe in Brussels' in a fun atmosphere.

The “SOS Planet” exhibition is set to be the biggest exhibition ever created on the topic of climate change.

Throughout the Belgian Presidency of the EU, the Brussels-Capital Region will be offering tours of discovery in the canal area (guided, with a reservation, or unaccompanied) of projects cofinanced by the European Union.

Architecture and urban planning in the European Quarter: past, present and future. Many artists have resided in the Leopold Quarter in the past. The project aims to show visitors the past and future potential of the area. During the Belgian presidency of the European Union, a discovery group will be set up in the European Quarter, accompanied by an exhibition.

Take part in a fun adventure quest through Brussels' European district, complete with a prize-winning contest, a version for kids (also with prize-winning contest) and a photo competition.

When the design world moves into to the power station, something must be afoot! 20 designers agreed to play the game, to reveal the mysterious and hazardous journey from creative idea to finished object, a design object intended for mass production to improve our lives; this conversation oscillates between art and technology, it is a constant - and sometimes strained - dialogue between the designer and the constraints of industrial manufacture.