Producing Statistics on Social and Solidarity Economy: Policy Recommendations and Directions for Future Research

This paper is a guide for governments interested in developing SSE statistics in their country and for researchers interested in working on improving and developing SSE statistics. The first section details why the production of SSE statistics is so important for governments and SSE actors. It highlights that these statistics help to make visible and legitimize the SSE as a new field of public action, and contribute to a better design, implementation and evaluation of policies aimed at promoting the SSE. The next section identifies the main types of SSE statistics to be produced. The first are quantitative economic statistics on the SSE within the framework of conventional economic aggregates and standard methodologies. The second are statistics that allow the quantification of SSE impacts. The third are statistics allowing comparisons at different levels, and between SSE and other types of economic entities such as for-profit enterprises. The next section focuses on the producers of statistics. It points out that, in addition to national statistical offices, which should play a leading role, universities and research centres, as well as “umbrella” organizations, are also key producers of statistics that can work together. Obstacles in the production of SSE statistics are the focus of the following section. The main ones are technical skills, tensions that blur the field of SSE, lack of funding to carry out statistical work and, finally, the absence of a normative mandate to push governments and statistical institutes to undertake this statistical endeavour. The paper concludes with recommendations for policy makers interested in the development of SSE statistics, as well as an outlook on areas for future research.

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