Moldova: EU4Youth mobilises support to improve the legal framework for social entrepreneurship

Over 100 social entrepreneurs, national authorities and experts in the field of social entrepreneurship participated in one of the largest social entrepreneurship events of the year – the National Conference on the legislation of Social Entrepreneurship in the Republic of Moldova on 16 February 2021.  

The event was organised by the EU4Youth EUnlocking project (Unlocking the potential of young social entrepreneurs in Moldova and Ukraine).

Following several public hearings organised at the beginning of February, the National Conference on 16 February provided a platform for dialogue between relevant actors in the sector and brought into discussion the adjustment of the regulatory framework for regulating social entrepreneurship in the country, as well as the needs and expectations of social enterprises.

Emphasising the importance of social entrepreneurship, Sergiu Gurau, the Executive Director of the Eco-Razeni association which organised the event with EU4Youth, said that “public authorities, civil society organisations, and economic operators cannot tackle social and environmental challenges alone. Society has therefore been searching for new formulas to find solutions to such problems. And the topic of social entrepreneurship has come as one of the promising alternatives to cope with some social and environmental problems.”

Aurica Butnari, Programme Manager for economic development of the EU Delegation in Moldova, said that “social entrepreneurship is in an early stage of development in the Republic of Moldova, although over the last few years, several initiatives to develop social enterprises, including with the support of the European Union, were launched. In 2020, the European Union, through grants to NGOs with a total of €5 million, also contributed to the establishment of 13 social enterprises in the country.”

Representatives of the Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure, as well as the Ministry of Health, Labour and Social Protection, reaffirmed their commitment to support young social entrepreneurs and leverage institutional capacities by creating financial, tax and institutional prerequisites for the development of social enterprises in Moldova.

Vasile Vulpe from the Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure confirmed the government would consider the topic of social entrepreneurship as a “national priority” in the process of developing public policy documents, such as the Government Action Plan for 2020-2023.

A Member of Parliament, Dumitru Alaiba, told participants that “social entrepreneurship comes to fill the gap existing between profit and non-profit. However, for social businesses to develop in a favourable and attractive environment, it requires an enabling legal framework as well as active involvement of each member of society.”

In all the three plenary sessions of the conference, participants underlined the importance state support to promote social entrepreneurship. Several recommendations to amend and complete the legislative framework on social entrepreneurship were offered by experts, who analysed the legal framework and pointed out the gaps in the current legislation on social entrepreneurship. These suggestions will be submitted to the relevant decision making bodies in the country next month.

The EUnlocking project helps to foster the social entrepreneurial potential of young people in Moldova and Ukraine by establishing a favourable ecosystem for social enterprises, as well as by inspiring and supporting more young social entrepreneurs to develop and sustain their innovative solutions to the promotion of social inclusion and environmental sustainability across both countries. The project is co-funded by the European Union under its EU4Youth Programme.

The EUnlocking project is implemented by the Gustav Stresemann Institute e.V. (GSI) (Germany), Egalite International (Ukraine), AXA Management Consulting organisation (Moldova), ECO-RAZENI Association (Moldova), the National Assistance and Information Centre for NGOs in Moldova “CONTACT” (Moldova), and “Pro NGO! e.V” (Germany).