RISHI MAHARAJ

In my last column I highlighted the hidden pandemic that has been left naked for all to see. That is the pandemic of inequality that has affected so many of us and our loved ones during these times. This situation is not only unique to us here in the Caribbean but has been widely felt in every corner of the world.

Some have argued that the current crisis has exposed the failure of a capitalist economy to provide a level playing field for all. Covid19 has exposed the other phase of the economy that has always been conveniently rejected or has been paid not much heed to in the identification of the 'wealth of a nation.' These are the unorganised sector workers and their very exposition to the world in this time of worldwide lockdowns.

The world as we know it is currently facing at least three major crises simultaneously. A pandemic-induced health crisis has rapidly ignited an economic crisis with yet unknown consequences for financial stability, and all of this is playing out against the backdrop of a climate crisis that cannot be addressed by 'business as usual.'

We are therefore at a turning point, due to circumstances most of which I believe are of our own making, where we need to rethink how our economic and social activities are organised. The crises we currently face call for strong responses based on solidarity, co-operation and responsibility. One such rethink I would like to recommend is the idea of adopting a social economy enterprises approach.

Defining the social economy is not an easy task, because it includes a large variety of stakeholders, between the private (business) and public sectors (government). It includes organisations such as cooperatives, non-profit organisations and charities. In the interpretation adopted by the European Commission, social economy enterprises (SEEs) are economic and social players active in all sectors of society; they are set up to respond to people's needs.

They are run according to shared features, values and principles such as the primacy of the individual and the social objective over capital, voluntary and open membership, and democratic governance. They seek not to maximise short-term profits, but to ensure their long-term viability. Profits are reinvested in creating and maintaining jobs or in developing activities that pursue the social objective, or else are distributed among the members on the basis of their personal contributions.

According to the OECD, 'the social economy is a significant economic and social actor in its own right, and one that has proven resilient in past crises. In the EU, there are 2.8 million social economy entities, accounting for, on average, 6.3 per cent of EU employment. The social economy was resilient in economic downturns following the global financial crisis in 2008. For example, in countries such as Italy and Belgium, employment in the public and private sectors decreased sharply during the period 2008-2010 just after the crisis, while employment in social enterprises actually grew (11.5 per ce