South Africa Roundtable 2024 On 29 November 2024, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, in partnership with the World Economic Forum, African Union Commission, International Labour Organization (ILO), Motsepe Foundation and Africa Forward, convened a high-level roundtable on “Unlocking the Social and Solidarity Economy” in Johannesburg, South Africa. This event explored how South Africa’s fast-growing Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) can tackle its most urgent challenges through innovative and inclusive economic models. Over 60 leaders from government, business and civil society took part. Public sector participants included the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, the Department of Employment and Labour, the Industrial Development Corporation, the African Union Commission and the ILO. Private-sector voices from SAP , EY, Unilever, Anglo American, Standard Bank and others signalled rising corporate engagement with the social economy.Discussions spanned advancing policy, unlocking patient capital through innovative finance, integrating SSE actors into supply chains through social procurement and building movements that place communities at the centre. Participants also co-created strategies on how to reignite South Africa’s draft Social Economy Policy, align with the African Union’s forthcoming 10-year SSE Strategy, and how to harness South Africa’s 2025 G20 Presidency to champion the SSE as a driver of inclusive growth. The roundtable reinforced momentum for a locally- led SSE agenda in 2025, led by Africa Forward and South African innovators, connecting actors across sectors to scale purpose-driven solutions nationally and regionally. Image: On 29 November 2024, South Africa hosted a high-level roundtable on Unlocking the Social and Solidarity Economy to address the country’s most urgent challenges through innovative and inclusive economic approaches. Credit: Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship 33 Schwab Foundation Annual Report 2024–2025

Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship Annual Report 2024 2025