Asian Alliance for Solidarity Economy

by Ben Quiñones

Below is my report to the International Forum – Globalization of Solidarity Economy (Lux09) <www.lux09.lu> (April 22-25, Luxembourg) on the initiatives related to the promotion of solidarity economy in Asia. I wish to thank the various members of the Social Enterprise Task Force (SETF) who contributed inputs to this report, notably George Chen (China), Usha Sridharan (India), Omseng Bora (Cambodia), Ho Thi Quy (Vietnam), Agung Alit (Indonesia), Sunil Chitrakar (Nelpal), Rene Guarin (Philippines), Willy Maldia (Philippines), Robert Abao (Philippines), and Mody Karunaratne (Sri Lanka).

It is my hope that by informing our various partners in other continents about our initiatives in Asia, the international collaboration towards expanding outreach to social enterprises in Asia and other continents will be further advanced. Let us continue our Building Shared Vision (BSV) Learning Journey, share our experiences and relevant information, and advance our own dialogue on social enterprises/ solidarity economy in Asia.

A socially responsible enterprise is often referred to as a ‘social enterprise”. It is a mission oriented enterprise with a triple bottom line, or the 3p’s – people, planet, and profit.

CSRSME Asia promotes the development of social enterprises (SE) in Asia through information exchange and resource sharing. This is carried out through the ‘Building Shared Vision’ (BSV) Learning which enables the SE to transform itself into a more dynamic and flexible learning organization.

BSV Workshops

In 2009, CSRSME Asia conducted one regional BSV workshop in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia following the one conducted in Bangkok, Thailand in October 2008. BSV Bangkok gave birth to the conceptual framework of the Asian Alliance for Solidarity Economy (AASE) as a hub of solidarity economy in Asia. BSV Kuala Lumpur created the Social Enterprise Task Force (SETF) as a means for jump starting AASE. CSRSME Asia serves as the secretariat of SETF.

Several international organizations collaborated with CSRSME Asia in conducting the BSV Learning Journey. These included the RIPESS (International Association for the Promotion of Social and Solidarity Economy), SIDI (Society for Investment in Development Institutions), ALOE (Alliance for Responsible, Plural and Solidarity Economy), CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency), FPH (Charles Leopold Mayer Foundation), ADFIAP (Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific), and Oikocredit Southeast Asia.

The Social Enterprise Task Force (SETF)

As noted earlier, BSV Kuala Lumpur led to the creation of the Social Enterprise Task Force (SETF). To date, there are about 40 members of SETF from more than 30 organizations in15 countries (12 from Asian continent + 3 from other continents). Sunil Chitrakar and Ben Quinones, representatives of Asia to the RIPESS Board, are members of SETF. WFTO-Asia President Chandra Kacchipati has showed interest in beefing up SETF with participation of WFTO-Asia member companies in several Asian countries.

The strategic task of SETF is to promote the development of solidarity economy through the strengthening of solidarity based social enterprises in Asian countries. To give shape to the SETF work, 6 Workgroups were established through BSV Kuala Lumpur. Annex 1 shows the list of Workgroup members and their corresponding thematic topics for dialogue. Of the 6 workgroups, 5 are active as of the writing of this report.

Information Exchange through the aa4se web2 portal

The web2 portal of the Asian Alliance for Solidarity Economy (AASE) www.aa4se.com serves as the communication hub of the SETF. The need for information on innovative practices of SEs is a strong driver for participation of relevant organizations in the SETF. Information exchange among SETF members transpire online through the aa4se portal. As of April 5, 2009 the aa4se web2 portal registered total visits of 305,000 and expected to grow to 1 million by end of 2009.

The SETF Work Group on web2 portal is planning to organize a training camp in July 2009 to train prospective users of web2 portal for their respective institutions, and also as a means for linking the SETF initiatives to the SE development efforts in individual countries.

The Social Finance/ Social Development Bank Project

Another strong driver for participation in SETF is the desire of SEs to have easier access to social finance. Immediately after BSV Kuala Lumpur, nine (9) participating organizations mainly from Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Philippines, and Vietnam indicated their interest in exploring funding possibilities with member banks of the International Association of Investors in Social Economy (INAISE).

A resume of projects proposed by various SETF members in the abovementioned countries are shown in Annex 2.

SSE Networking in Asia: The Way Ahead

At present, CSRSME Asia faces the challenge of further advancing SSE in various Asian countries as well as building a strong SSE continental network in Asia through the hosting and conduct of the following international meetings:

1. Asian Forum for Solidarity Economy. November 7-10, 2009. Tokyo. Local partner institution – Pacific Asia Resource Center (PARC) in cooperation with local social development organizations.

2. Asia-Pacific Regional Meeting on Social Performance 2009 (venue and dates to be decided during the Global Social Performance Task Force meeting in Madrid, June 2009).

3. Asian Citizens Assembly (ACA). 2010. Bangalore, India. Specific dates to be announced. Focal organization: China-India Youth Forum in cooperation with public and private universities.

4. Global Social Entrepreneurship Forum. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 2010. Specific dates to be announced soon. Partner institution – Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute (ASLI)

5. International Meeting on the Globalization of Solidarity Economy. 2013. RIPESS has decided to locate this meeting in Asia with both CSRSME Asia and World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO)-Asia as lead organizations.

 

Annex Social Finance/ Social Development Bank projects proposed by SETF Members

Name/ Country	Amount (Euro)	Purpose/Application of fund	Legal personality	Potential Foreign participation
TYM Fund Vietnam	2.28 m	-Finance enterprise of poor women -capacity building	-Govt licence to operate as microfinance institution by end of 2009	-up to 49& equity participation
Huang Jin Bo Foundation China	2.16 m	-Finance consumer cooperatives, social welfare services, provide microinsurance	-NGO non-profit foundation to be transformed into social/ ethical bank in 4 – 5 years	-Long term loan to HJBF -Equity participation in social bank
Stimulation Fund, Mitra Bali, Indonesia	Variable	-Finance artisan production for export	-NGO, non-profit org	-Long term loan
Social Enterprise Finance Facility (SEFF), Urban Marketing Foundation Inc, Phil	0.31 m	-Productivity based loans to social enterprises	-NGO, non-profit foundation	-Long term loan
Mt. Zion Ethical Community Bank, Phil	0.28 m	-Productivity based loans to social enterprises	-Rural Bank	-up to 49 % equity participation
Mahaguhti Handicrafts Nepal	Variable	-Advance payments to fair trade producers	-Registered trading company	-Financing of fair trade
Land Bank of the Philippines	Based on financing needs of agricultural producers	-Finance various projects of agricultural and fisherfolks cooperatives	-Banking institution	- Alternative funding for cooperative lending program
RGVN, India	0.46 m	-Income generating projects of poor & vulnerable	-Social wing of a commercial bank, IFCI	-Revolving fund for new enterprises
Vision Fund Cambodia	-Fraction of total assets of Eu 17 m	–Loans to small social enterprises	-NGO	-Long term loan