Unlocking the Social Economy 2025

Repair, reuse and recycle At the heart of the circular economy, social enterprises contribute to product affordability by promoting repair, reuse and recycling. Social enterprises develop repair services or “repair cafés” that offer affordable repair services for electronics, appliances, clothing and other goods. Second-hand stores are another common business model for social enterprises, where pre-owned goods can be bought and sold at a low cost. In 2023, Technoserve, Ikea Social Entrepreneurship and the Global Alliance for Social Entrepreneurship published a report highlighting social enterprise’s potential in the circular economy.47 The report finds that social enterprises benefit the circular economy by, among other impact aspects, creating social benefits for their target groups. This includes recycling companies that employ low-income or marginalized populations directly to source or sort materials and social enterprises repurposing or remanufacturing material typically sourced at a low cost, enabling them to provide affordable products for low-income consumers.  Job creation in the reuse sector: social enterprises create 70 jobs per 1,000 tonnes of materials collected for the purpose of being reused. Source: RREUSE. (2021). Job creation in the re-use sector: data insights from social enterprises. https://rreuse.org/wp-content/uploads/04-2021-job-creation-briefing.pdf. 2.3 Accessibility of goods and services The green and digital transitions impact the availability of relevant goods and services across geographies and communities. Digital technologies enable remote access to essential services such as healthcare, education and financial services, bridging the gap caused by geographical and socioeconomic barriers. Green technologies such as solar panels and other renewable energy solutions can be deployed in off-grid areas, increasing access to electricity in underserved communities. However, this does require the services and infrastructure necessary to operate them. Social enterprises play a crucial role in ensuring access to essential goods and services to hard-to- reach populations and have spearheaded off-grid solutions in areas lacking traditional infrastructure. They do so through deep community engagement and inclusive innovations. Community-based solutions Social enterprises build and use community members’ knowledge, resources and participation to create accessible products and services. Social enterprises have local networks and deep insight into emerging market consumers’ needs, wants and behaviours.48 Of the social enterprises in Europe whose purpose is to improve outcomes for a target population, more than 65% involve them in their production processes/services in one way or another. Indeed, many social enterprises are made up of local community members who aim to mitigate issues within their specific community, making them a ripe source of place-based knowledge and innovation. WeTu in Kenya BOX 5 Green transition dimension: Greening transport and mobility, greening agriculture and food production In the Lake Victoria region of Kenya, only 35% of the population has access to clean drinking water, and only 20% of the population is connected to the central energy grid.49 The social enterprise WeTu , founded in 2019, tackles this need. The name “WeTu”, meaning “ours” in Swahili, represents their focus on community-based solutions on three key products: solar-power rentable fishing lanterns, e-mobility bikes and clean drinking water ATMs (automated teller machines). Their fishing lanterns are chargeable and float in water, so there is no risk of water pollution. The lanterns are rented so that WeTu can manage maintenance and repairs instead of users. Their e-mobility bikes are also pollution-free, quieter and rented so users can better manage their finances during the off-season. The water WeTu provides is available 24/7, 365 days a year, through a water ATM system that accepts cashless payments, making it readily available even in rural areas. Source: WeTu Unlocking the Social Economy: Towards Equity in the Green and Digital Transitions 16