EUCLID Network issued a joint statement on social entrepreneurship in Europe

Euclid Network, the European Network representing social enterprises, together with 24 of the most prominent national networks for social enterprises from 20 countries have now joined forces and agreed to back 7 proposed actions in the statement to emphasize the importance of social enterprises in creating innovative solutions for sustainable impact. After six months of negotiations leading to the final vote of confidence of the European Parliament, the new European Commission will take office Sunday, the 1^st of December:

Dear new Commission,

Euclid Network, the European Network representing social enterprises, together with 24 of the most prominent national networks for social enterprises from 20 countries join forces to wish you a successful mandate. As European Commission you are in a good position to enhance social entrepreneurship and social innovation in Europe.

In this statement we present 7 priorities to keep impact-driven entrepreneurs advancing in Europe and its single market.

Proposed actions:

Ensure visibility of social enterprises amongst the general public, governments and corporates through a European wide Buy Social campaign.

Advance towards a common understanding on the legal and regulatory framework of social enterprises across Europe through cross-border learning and cross-border exchange.

Improve access to finance for social enterprises through:

• simplified application procedures for EU funding, especially of the European Social Fund;

• increasing the budget of EaSI guarantee instrument (via Invest EU);

• investing in innovative financial products tailored to the specific characteristics of social enterprises.

Promote socially responsible public procurement in Europe through:

• binding social and environmental clauses in 100% of EU tenders and public contracts;

• encouraging Member States to include binding social and environmental clauses in all their public contracts. Invest and educate in impact measurement for social enterprises to better demonstrate their positive effect on the economy and society.

Invest and educate in impact measurement for social enterprises to better demonstrate their positive effect on the economy and society.

Enhance social innovation across Europe through:

• supporting internationalisation of social enterprises;

• building and enhancing (academic) knowledge on social entrepreneurship;

• encouraging educational institutions such as schools and universities to cover social entrepreneurship skills in their curricula.

Support intermediary organisations offering social enterprises assistance in financing, networking, business advisory and development support.

We want to thank you for your attention to these points. Your stance and vision are crucial to the health of the European social enterprise sector, enabling improved impact of sustainable solutions to global challenges. We stand ready to work alongside you to further advance these priorities.

Yours sincerely,