Social economy in Romania

2010

During the past 20 years, social economy became a subject of interest because its organisations had to assume an increasing role in the production and supply of social goods and services of public interest. In Romania, although forms of social economy existed for a very long time in society, we can not speak of an institutionally or juridical determined area, with actual outputs. This study 5 shows the stage of social economy development taking into consideration three forms of social economy which are present in Romania: the cooperatives, the non-governmental organisations and the mutual aid organisations. The three types of organisations have a low potential for social economy activities. There is no specific legislative framework which to encourage the development of social economy activities, while the availability of the public institutions to support the organisations addressing the vulnerable groups is very limited. The cases in which the three forms of social economy address directly the higher employment of the disadvantaged groups are rather isolated. As a general characteristic, except for

During the past 20 years, social economy became a subject of interest because its organisations had to assume an increasing role in the production and supply of social goods and services of public interest. In Romania, although forms of social economy existed for a very long time in society, we can not speak of an institutionally or juridical determined area, with actual outputs. This study 5 shows the stage of social economy development taking into consideration three forms of social economy which are present in Romania: the cooperatives, the non-governmental organisations and the mutual aid organisations. The three types of organisations have a low potential for social economy activities. There is no specific legislative framework which to encourage the development of social economy activities, while the availability of the public institutions to support the organisations addressing the vulnerable groups is very limited. The cases in which the three forms of social economy address directly the higher employment of the disadvantaged groups are rather isolated. As a general characteristic, except for

Calitatea vietii, 2018

ADRIANA NEGUŢ s a consequence of intensifying funding for social economy, the number of researches, publications and debates on social economy's role and the awareness of the concept have increased. The main sources of funding have made an important contribution to how the social economy is understood and the development of this field in Romania. Based on the institutionalist theories according to which the development of the social economy and the organization and functioning of its entities depend on the economic, social and institutional context in which they operate Rueshemeyer, 2009;, this article analyses the development of the social economy sector in Romania. The research question to which the article attempts to provide answers addresses the relationship between the definition of social economy and social enterprise and the subsequent development of these entities in Romania. Despite of intense efforts to define the social economy and legislation of the sector in recent years, the results of the research analysed in the paper indicate a lack of consistency, still present at national level, regarding the understanding of the social economy and social enterprises. Limiting the social economy sector especially to its role in social inclusion has led to its development especially in this area. Based on a background analysis of the data gathered in 2013 through a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods, the article presents an analysis of the degree of knowledge of the term, the defining characteristics of social enterprises and their main contributions, and, at the same time, draws attention on the tendency to underestimate the role of the social economy in social and economic development.

2013

The article explores development potential of Romanian social economy (SE) by projecting some solutions and recommendations for the sustainable development of SE in Romania. The article presents scenarios for the development of the SE in Romania. In the first scenario, the social enterprises enjoy the same regime as any other economical agent, having a facilitate access to the institutional and financial resources. In the second scenario, social enterprises are being promoted through specific support mechanisms. We have identified two strategic options in the second scenario: supporting the social enterprises independently from the employment of the vulnerable groups and promoting, besides social enterprises, the social insertion enterprises orientated towards employing vulnerable groups. Undertaking any of the two scenarios involves a series of recommendations regarding the financial, legal, institutional and social framework that is being analyzed. The article argues that fulfilling the obligations as a member state of the European Union in- Fragments from the article belong to the Recommendations report for the 2013 Romanian social economy within the project POSDRU The Model of social economy in Romania co-

In Romania, the term of social economy is rather new and almost unknown for the public at large, and the legal framework contains only regulations specific for different types of entities which perform activities or which generate effects that may be considered as partial forms of social economy. This paper reviews the recent literature which approached mostly the problems of conceptualization and definition of the social economy, both at the national and European level. The paper also proposes an evaluation of the social economy sector in Romania in terms of its development capacity on medium-term. The paper reviews scientific contributions from Romania and abroad, reports of public or private institutions, and development policies. All these documents are used to develop a theoretical framework of the social economy and to describe the social economy as a sector of activity within the European Union and Romania, taking into consideration several criteria.

2013

The article analyses research of social economy (SE) in Romania. The first part is dedicated to the SE as a response to the professional insertion of those interested in working in this field. The second part showcases the results of other research performed in Romania on the SE focusing on the vulnerable groups. Romanian studies in SE exploded starting with 2010 mainly due to projects co-financed by European Social Fund (ESF). Directly connected with eligible activities for ESF financing, employment of vulnerable groups is largely approached in analysed volumes. SE is viewed as an innovative response to the problem of securing employment. Among vulnerable groups, roma minority is the most studied. Low availability of research reports and lack of their on-line centralization is an obstacle in accessing obtained results. Analysis of Romanian volumes focus on SE shows a partial correlation with previous research reports. Research is fragmented and partially covers subjects of interest for public policies in the field. Among these, assessment of ESF co-financed projects on vulnerable groups could support adjustments of specific directions of action.

Sociologie Romaneasca

Problemy Polityki Społecznej Studia i Dyskusje

This paper shows that Romania, as a post-communist country until the '90 succeeded to embrace the social economy sector and accessing these opportunities for its own social-economic development of communities and social inclusion of vulnerable citizens. The social economy domain existed in Romania before communism, but it had different stages of development and characteristics due to its period of political regime. A mixed research method, combining secondary analysis of data, longitudinal analysis and local case study experience was conducted. The original value of the scientific field is by analysing the way the social economy entities from the European and Romanian levels have a common objective to bring sustainable community development using the mixed research method. Also, how in 15 years the number of social enterprises in Romania grew and offered real opportunities to citizens, such as job opportunities, program qualifications and support for dependent persons etc.

European Journal of Accounting, Finance & Business

In Romania, the field of social economy is relatively new. The concern for social enterprises has acquired a more pronounced character only in recent years. From our point of view, social enterprises can be characterized as a mechanism aimed at solving the social and environmental problems in an innovative way, in a transparent manner. They are aimed at achieving a sustained impact on the society itself. The objectives of the social enterprises refer to the identification of practical solutions to social problems by using the resources in order to validate opportunities based on identifying the social problems and on turning them into business opportunities especially by identifying those innovative methods in order to generate a social impact.