Poor people attend a vocational training class to learn how to make bamboo products in the southern province of Kien Giang (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - A survey has found that 59 percent of socialenterprises will cancel their support for disadvantaged groups to ensure theirbusinesses survive if the global COVID-19 pandemic lasts until September thisyear.
A social enterprise is a humane business model used to solve specific socialand environmental problems. Its purpose is to create jobs for disadvantagedgroups, which includes people who lose the ability to work and liveindependently and live on social welfare and Government support.
The survey, conducted by the National Economics University’s Center for SocialInnovation and Entrepreneurship (CSIE) from April10-12, aimed to assess theimpacts of COVID-19 on social enterprises, and then form recommendations. Itinvolved 30 businesses in the fields of food, organic agriculture, vocationaltraining, handicrafts and sustainable tourism.
It revealed that 68 percent of social enterprises were maintaining efforts tocontinue operations until the end of the second quarter of this year, while 38 percentsaid they would halt operations or go bankrupt if the pandemic lasted until theend of this year.
A CSIE report showed that Vietnam had about 1,000 social enterprises operatingunder the 2014 Law on Enterprise, and 21,000 social-impact businesses (SIB),which were small-scale with below 20 workers – accounting for 4 percent of Vietnam’stotal enterprises.
About 163,000 people working for social enterprises and 3.5 million peopleemployed by SIBs who had not received support from their enterprises since thepandemic hit the country.
CSIE researchers asked the Government and State management agencies torecognise the social enterprises’ important role in sharing the burden ofsocial security and development within the country.
They recommended the Government give social enterprises access to a creditpackage of 62 trillion VND (2.65 billion USD) designed to support workers whohave lost their jobs or been affected by the pandemic, with simplifiedprocedures and detailed instructions.
The researchers said that international experience, including from the UK and theRepublic Korea, showed that the Vietnamese Government has taken timely actionson social security for businesses and the public, but there was still a lack ofpolicies specific to social enterprises.
In addition, it is needed to help social enterprises by calling on thecommunity to buy their products or directly fund disadvantaged groups./.
A social enterprise is a humane business model used to solve specific socialand environmental problems. Its purpose is to create jobs for disadvantagedgroups, which includes people who lose the ability to work and liveindependently and live on social welfare and Government support.
The survey, conducted by the National Economics University’s Center for SocialInnovation and Entrepreneurship (CSIE) from April10-12, aimed to assess theimpacts of COVID-19 on social enterprises, and then form recommendations. Itinvolved 30 businesses in the fields of food, organic agriculture, vocationaltraining, handicrafts and sustainable tourism.
It revealed that 68 percent of social enterprises were maintaining efforts tocontinue operations until the end of the second quarter of this year, while 38 percentsaid they would halt operations or go bankrupt if the pandemic lasted until theend of this year.
A CSIE report showed that Vietnam had about 1,000 social enterprises operatingunder the 2014 Law on Enterprise, and 21,000 social-impact businesses (SIB),which were small-scale with below 20 workers – accounting for 4 percent of Vietnam’stotal enterprises.
About 163,000 people working for social enterprises and 3.5 million peopleemployed by SIBs who had not received support from their enterprises since thepandemic hit the country.
CSIE researchers asked the Government and State management agencies torecognise the social enterprises’ important role in sharing the burden ofsocial security and development within the country.
They recommended the Government give social enterprises access to a creditpackage of 62 trillion VND (2.65 billion USD) designed to support workers whohave lost their jobs or been affected by the pandemic, with simplifiedprocedures and detailed instructions.
The researchers said that international experience, including from the UK and theRepublic Korea, showed that the Vietnamese Government has taken timely actionson social security for businesses and the public, but there was still a lack ofpolicies specific to social enterprises.
In addition, it is needed to help social enterprises by calling on thecommunity to buy their products or directly fund disadvantaged groups./.
VNA
