The social and solidarity economy (SSE) in Morocco was at the heart of the debates during a webinar of the CDG Group Institute, organized this Tuesday, November 8, 2022.
A meeting attended by eminent personalities, Amina Kchirid Professor of Higher Education, Founding President of CIRA-ESS (Center for Incubation and Research-Action in Social and Solidarity Economy) and Founding Director of LAREDGO, Dr Bouchra Rahmouni Full Professor and Director of the Social Innovation Laboratory and the CoopLab of UM6P, Ahmed Benabadji Founder of the Transilience Institute and President of the “Open Village” association, teacher (Social and Solidarity Entrepreneurship) at the Ecole Centrale de Casablanca , Sanaë Alami Afilal, project manager for the General Management of the OCP Group, trainer in “Communication 360 stakeholders” at UM6P and coordinator of the work of OTED (territorial empowerment and development).
Moderated as usual by Aziz Boucetta, publication director of the information portal PanoraPost.com, the exchanges were very interesting. Indeed, the speakers reflected on the challenges of this different economy through its reasons for being as well as its events. The SSE, which project leaders or local entrepreneurs bring to life on a daily basis, brings together a set of structures based on common values and principles.
Throughout this debate, it was question of social utility, cooperation, local anchoring adapted to the necessities and richnesses of the territories, even of country, of nuance between the solidarity economy and that social. The discussions also focused on the differences between entrepreneurship and the SSE (Ahmed Benabadji,) up to rethinking it differently while reframing received ideas, saying that the SSE is the economy of the poor. For the teacher at the Ecole Centrale de Casablanca, the SSE is rather “an economy that repairs inequalities”.
For Professor Amina Kchirid, “ the SSE is born from the synthesis of several concepts: social economy, social and solidarity economy, social entrepreneurship and social innovation. These last two concepts arrived much later than their previous ones in history”, according to the Founder of CIRA-ESS and are therefore different. For Amina Kchirid, “the SSE combines economic efficiency and social utility”.
Associations, cooperatives, mutuals and foundations… or organizations which defend the priority of man over capital and involve them in the matter of collective management have not been left out. This was also heavily discussed. Dr Bouchra Rahmouni explained that “ the SSE stands out from Social and Solidarity Entrepreneurship on the basis of two criteria, governance and lucrativeness”. At a time when the SSE will favor democratic governance and limited profit-making, Social Entrepreneurship can in terms of status opt for that of the SSE of a cooperative, Associations, cooperatives, mutuals, foundations… or opt for a company let’s say commercial.
In the game of the definition of the SSE, Sanaë Alami Afilal, project manager with the General Management of the OCP Group, joining that of his co-stakeholders, prefers the terms purpose and values. The first being at the service of Man and not that of profit. To the values, it will add this notion of preservation of the environment. “It must be integrated into the SSE, just like local anchoring and cultural content. This can greatly contribute to the SSE,” she added. Then, she concludes, “there is innovation, the SSE innovates by essence, it is intrinsic to what is happening on the ground”.
To keep it simplistic, the alternative economy, commonly referred to as SSE for social and solidarity economy, is committed to meeting social and environmental needs while promoting human values and principles such as equity, solidarity, democracy, cooperation and others. virtues of a business which, despite its long history, remains without a real legal framework in Morocco. All the same ! To follow the rest, we will refer you to the video of this webinar CDG Group Institute. The formula is known, the absent are always wrong.