[Translation : EPALE France]

Timothée Duverger is a fervent defender of the values of the social and solidarity economy, which can be summed up in these few words: solidarity, cooperation and democratic participation.

He participates in a wide range of activities, both academic (Sciences Po Bordeaux, Centre Emile Durkheim) and associative (Observatoire des Territoires Zero Chômeur de Longue Durée). He writes regularly for the press (Alternatives Economiques) and has published several books.

His thinking extends beyond France: he is also involved with the GSEF (Global Social Economy Forum), whose next meeting is set to take place in October 2025 in Bordeaux (France).

The EPALE France team met with him at the last national social and solidarity economy forum, in Niort in January-February 2024. We were keen to continue our discussions on the role that the social economy can play in building the Europe of tomorrow.

EPALE: In France and at the UN, it is known as the “social and solidarity economy”, and in Europe simply as the “social economy”. What does this notion of the “social economy” cover?

The European Union defines the social economy in both normative and statutory terms. First, it identifies three principles:

• Putting people and social and/or environmental objectives before profit,
• Reinvesting most profit and surplus in activities in the interests of members or users (“collective interest”) or society at large (“general interest”),
• Democratic and/or participative governance.

This covers a number of private law entities, including cooperatives, mutual societies, associations, foundations, social enterprises and other similar legal forms. 

This definition, which is similar to the French version in the 2014 law, is the result of a long process of institutionalisation at European level that began in 1989 under the Delors Commission. After being pitted against a number of concepts, such as the voluntary sector and social entrepreneurship, it is the social economy, as supported by the Latin countries, that has come to the fore as a counterbalance to the single market through a pluralism of economic models. 

The figures should be considered with caution, but it is estimated that 13.6 million jobs and 82.8 million volunteers are part of the social economy. However, situations remain highly disparate. The social economy accounts for between 9 and 10% of jobs in Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, but less than 2% in the new Member States, such as Cyprus, Croatia, Lithuania, Malta, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. There is therefore a need for convergence.

Could you give some examples of emblematic initiatives in Europe?

There are many, but if I had to pick just one, it would be the Territoires Zéro Chômeur de Longue Durée (TZCLD - Zero Long-Term Unemployed Territories) experiment currently underway in France as a practical expression of the right to employment enshrined in the Preamble to the 1946 Constitution.

The experiment consists of reversing the logic of employment, which means having unemployed people contribute to defining the content of work by combining their desires and know-how with the unmet social needs in their region. The jobs created in this way are supported by employment-based enterprises belonging to the social economy (associations, cooperatives), while the governance of the project is provided by the local employment committee, chaired by a local authority. These activities contribute primarily to the ecological transition and social cohesion. The experiment was launched in 2016 in France, and initially involved ten territories before being renewed in 2020 and now extended to around sixty territories.

The experiment is now spreading across Europe. Wallonia has announced its intention to roll out the system in 17 areas, while the municipality of Rome plans to implement it in the working-class districts of Tor Bella Monaca and Corviale. Similar programmes can be found in Marienthal in Austria, Groningen in the Netherlands and Berlin in Germany. So much so that the European Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, Nicolas Schmit, has announced European support for these experiments. A number of think tanks, such as the Foundation for European Progressive Studies (FEPS) and the Fondation Jean-Jaurès, are now using these experiments to argue for the adoption of a Europe-wide employment guarantee, which would add a social dimension to the European Green Deal.

© Territoires zéro chômeur de longue durée

Where do European public policies in favour of the social economy stand?

While social economy policies have been in place since 1989, they reached a turning point with the European Union’s Social Business Initiative in 2011. But they are taking on a new dimension today. In 2021, the European Commission presented its action plan for the social economy, in which it emphasised that the “social economy has the potential to reshape the economy post-COVID through inclusive and sustainable economic models leading to a fairer ecological, economic and social transformation”.

The plan, also prepared by Nicolas Schmit, involves creating a favourable framework with tax incentives, State aid and public procurement. Its development will also be supported, in particular through the InvestEU programme, which covers guarantees for access to credit, equity and capital investments. But the resources earmarked are inadequate, as the plan does not announce any increase in the volume of dedicated funding, and there is no associated budget. 

However, significant progress has been made. In 2023, the Council of the European Union adopted a recommendation making employment and social inclusion policies a priority. Measures are proposed to promote access to the labour market, inclusion, training and social innovation. This recommendation also calls on Member States to develop or renew social economy strategies for access to finance and to public and private markets, state aid, taxation, social impact measures and visibility and recognition. The endorsement of these policies by historically distant countries such as Germany and Poland is a good indicator that the policies are taking root in Europe.

How can we inform and educate people about the values of the social economy - particularly the most disadvantaged? 

With regard to training, the recommendation encourages the Member States to develop training and the development of skills useful to the social economy in two ways: firstly, by mobilising the social economy to promote inclusion and, secondly, by promoting the social economy in training courses.

The first case involves anticipating changes in skills brought about by digital and ecological transitions, ensuring the retraining and further training of lifelong learners, particularly women and disadvantaged groups, and creating programmes for young people, especially NEETs (not in employment, education or training), to help them enter the labour market. The second case involves integrating the social economy at all levels of education, particularly in entrepreneurship and management courses, by encouraging student initiatives (student cooperatives, support and mentoring programmes), as well as creating centres of competence for training in the social economy on a national and transnational scale.

In this context, the Erasmus + programmes, which encourage study trips centred on professional practices, are particularly welcome. They encourage the development of skills and the dissemination of experiments. Although they are currently not widely used, it would be in the interest of social economy players to make greater use of them, including by mobilising the method of cross-fertilisation of knowledge and practices implemented by ATD Quart-Monde, which creates the conditions for knowledge derived from the life experience of people experiencing poverty to engage with scientific and professional knowledge.

Read more:

Timothée Duverger, “Europe sociale: passons des promesses aux actes!”, Alternatives économiques, 23 February 2024. Available (in French) at: https://www.alternatives-economiques.fr/timothee-duverger/europe-sociale-passons-promesses-aux-actes/00109702

Timothée Duverger, “Une autre économie, pour une autre Europe ?”, 16 February 2022. Available (in French) at: https://www.alternatives-economiques.fr/timothee-duverger/une-economie-une-europe/00102146

Timothée Duverger, L'économie sociale et solidaire, La découverte, 2023.

Timothée Duverger and Achille Warnant, La garantie d'emploi territorialisée pour une Europe solidaire, Fondation Jean-Jaurès, 13 November 2023. Available (in French) at: https://www.jean-jaures.org/publication/vers-une-garantie-demploi-territorialisee-pour-une-europe-solidaire/