Combating social exclusion & integrating vulnerable groups in the labour market through SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP in SERBIA Dr. Ioannis NASIOULAS Expert to the European Commission – Social Business Initiative – GECES & GECES Sub GROUP Workshop 'Work with vulnerable groups‘ INT MARKT Organised in co-operation with the National Employment Service of the Republic of Serbia, 21&22 March 2013, Belgrade, SERBIA

Capacity Optimization for the National Employment Service of Serbia A.Incorporating the Social Business Initiative Added Value B.Inquiring in the Potential of a National Social Economy Strategic Planning C.Reviewing Best Practices of Social Entrepreneurship at Local and Regional Level

Towards universal European Union policies for Social Economy

Social Business Initiative: An Outlook 3 Lines of Fire 11 Strategic Plans of Action 1 Common Goal To boost entrepreneurship, enhance social cohesion, and facilitate local employment development in the European Union The Official Social Business Initiative Website:

a. Funding Optimization for Social Enterprises 1. Enhancing the regulatory framework for IMPACT INVESTMENTS 2. Improving the legal and institutional framework for MICROCREDIT 3. €90-million dedicated to CAPACITY BUILDING, RESEARCH & DIRECT FUNDING 4. PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT of Social Enterprises in European funding

b. More Visible Social Enterprises 5. Building an INTEGRATED REGISTER of social enterprises in Europe 6. A SYSTEM OF LABELS & CERTIFICATIONS for social enterprises 7. CAPACITY BUILDING FOR STATES for the support, development and finance of social enterprises 8. NEW TECHNOLOGICAL TOOLS for the development of Social Economy

c. A Facilitating Framework 9. Better rules on European Cooperatives, Foundations, Associations and Mutuals 10. Awarding of PUBLIC PROCUREMENT contracts more socially sensitive 11. Simpler PUBLIC AID EU RULES

The BOTTOM LINE Social Economy is a MARKET very promising both in terms of economic profit and social outcomes We should NURTURE Social Economy in institutional and practical terms, otherwise its qualities will not easily come to fruition We should INVEST in Social Economy A vital Social Economy can RELIEVE public budget, It can provide MINIMUM INCOME for the most difficult-to-handle social groups, compensating for state failure and consumption of administrative effort and money It can INTEGRATE people in society It can be PROFITABLE for large-scale investment, especially in major public contracts (waste management, house construction, social care services, educational system, regional and local infrastructure development etc)

Serbia can become a success-story – Time to act is NOW

MAIN PRIORITIES EXPANDING the labour market – [“Viable income for more people”] Providing promising potentials for the USUAL OUTSIDERS – [“Visible incentives by the institutionally disinterested and detached”] Applying ACTIVE policies, thus allowing others than the state to enter the game – [“Their way”] Creating new INVESTMENT MARKETS – [“Untapped potentials”]

The RECIPY Active Market Policies are a multistakeholder effort and take time to come to fruition. Not an one-off attempt. 1.Institutional Recognition 2.Public Administration Competency 3.Investments in Education

STEP 1. Recognition An institutional definition of Social Economy, that will recognize the common attributes of the (a)charity (b)voluntary (c)cooperative sectors (d)and the Orthodox Church Common Administration: A centrally competent Regulatory Authority Common Audit: A centrally competent Tax and Economic Audit Authority

STEP 2. The Social Enterprise through formal law “Social enterprise is an institutionally separate from the government corporation with binding social goals and democratic function: (a) having the primary objective of serving its members, the community or society at large, (b) allowing the distribution of profits to its owners only to the extent that this does not undermine its social orientation, (c) functioning democratically with every one of its owners having one vote and (d) with any amendment made to its primary social goals or democratic function directly leading to its disqualification as a social enterprise” (Nasioulas, 2013, 35).

STEP 3. Data Led Policies An integrated Register of Social Enterprises and Social Economy Organizations. All-inclusive and inter-operational with the National-Accounting System Expanding the Satellite Accounts Approach (National Statistical Office) Chambers of Social Economy

STEP 4. Bottom-up approaches Social Economy in the Technical and University Curricula Social Economy in peer learning which is the spirit of the cooperative movement

Grounding in the local context is imperative

The Local Ingredients Expanding the vitality of the Cooperative Sector (administrative capacity, technical know-how) The Orthodox Church can win the day (network and legitimacy) Serbian Universities can engage in active labour market integration policies (transition from student to working life)

Promising practices Local INCUBATORS for social and innovative enterprises Seed and start-up FUNDING IN-KIND support through local business development centers run by volunteers from the academic community (cost effective)

Things to consider Initiate a public deliberation process for the introduction of a National Social Economy Plan Organize a European Conference on Social Economy and an overall know-how transfer continuum Hold a Major Stakeholders’ Meeting with key European and national players on the field with emphasis to funding and investment

MORE FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Thank You!