Social Entrepreneurs hip and Social Exclusion: A Multi-Level Analysis of Education and Emp loyment Initiatives in Amsterdam Zuidoost
Involved residents, participants and community members are important for the success of social enterprises in Amsterdam Zuidoost, according to Amy Abdou. Public funding also helps, as long as it does not result in t oo much dependency which can limit innovation.
On the basis of four case studies Abdou investigated how social enterprises function in a disadvantaged urban environment in terms of education, entrepreneurship and employment. She wanted to find out what makes th em successful or what gets in the way.
Amsterdam Zuidoost, a bo rough on the outskirts of Amsterdam, is a particularly relevant resea rch environment due to its continued policy focus on promoting entrep reneurship as a means of combating social exclusion. About 60% of the inhabitants have roots in Suriname, the Antilles or Ghana and 40% ex perience economic challenges.
Participation and financi ng
Where local residents are genuinely involved, educa tion, entrepreneurship and employment programs are more effective, Ab dou argues. Where residents are excluded, the results suffer. The org anizational structure also plays a role: initiatives that combine com mercial activities with external financing appear to be more resistan t to setbacks than organisations that depend on a single source of in come.
Public funding can provide an important boost to social e nterprises, but it does not guarantee better outcomes for residents o r stronger community involvement in decision-making. In fact, too muc h dependence on government support makes organizations vulnerable. Wh en long-term subsidies dry up and tenders favour large, administrativ ely stronger organisations, smaller, locally anchored initiatives fin d it difficult to compete.
Recommendations
Abdou advises, among other things, that community involvement sho
uld be a condition for financial support, and that one-dimensional ac
countability should make way for multi-stakeholder evaluation. She al
so argues for support in scaling up successful initiatives, and for e
ncouraging diversified financing models instead of dependence on one
source.
More information on the thesis
DESCRIPTION: Social Entrepreneurship and Social Exclusion: A Multi-Lev el Analysis of Education and Employment Initiatives in Amsterdam Zuid oost Involved residents, participants and community members a re important for the success of social enterprises in Amsterdam Zuido ost, according to Amy Abdou. Public funding also helps, as long as it does not result in too much dependency which can limit innovation.On the basis of four case studies Abdou investigated how socia l enterprises function in a disadvantaged urban environment in terms of education, entrepreneurship and employment. She wanted to find out what makes them successful or what gets in the way.Amsterdam Zuidoos t, a borough on the outskirts of Amsterdam, is a particularly relevan t research environment due to its continued policy focus on promoting entrepreneurship as a means of combating social exclusion. About 60% of the inhabitants have roots in Suriname, the Antilles or Ghana and 40% experience economic challenges.Participation and financi ngWhere local residents are genuinely involved, education, e ntrepreneurship and employment programs are more effective, Abdou arg ues. Where residents are excluded, the results suffer. The organizati onal structure also plays a role: initiatives that combine commercial activities with external financing appear to be more resistant to se tbacks than organisations that depend on a single source of income.Pu blic funding can provide an important boost to social enterprises, bu t it does not guarantee better outcomes for residents or stronger com munity involvement in decision-making. In fact, too much dependence o n government support makes organizations vulnerable. When long-term s ubsidies dry up and tenders favour large, administratively stronger o rganisations, smaller, locally anchored initiatives find it difficult to compete.Recommendations