The European Commission has set-up a new Expert Group on Social Economy. 

The new Expert Group on Social Economy has been created with the purpose of discuss and agree on developing and strengthening activities related to the implementation of the 5 pillars previously identified by the 'Groupe d'experts de la Commission sur l'entrepreneuriat social' - GECES: access to finance, access to markets, better framework conditions, new technologies and social innovation, as well as the development of an international dimension.

Concretely, the expert group will:

• examine the progress of measures envisaged in the communication on the start-up and scale-up initiative
• advise the Commission on policy measures to strengthen social economy and social enterprises ecosystem in EU countries and in the international arena
• raise awareness at the national level of EU level actions and exchange of practice from other EU countries

EMN is very proud to announce that it will be represented in the new Expert Group by its Vice-President, Dominique De Crayencour. 

Groupe d'experts de la Commission sur l'entrepreneuriat social' (GECES)

The European Commission's social business initiative (SBI), launched in 2011, set up a consultative multi-stakeholder group on social entrepreneurship to examine the progress of the measures envisaged in this Communication.

The SBI named the group 'Groupe d'experts de la Commission sur l'entrepreneuriat social' (GECES). It was set up for 6 years and included representatives from EU countries, local authorities, social entrepreneurs' organisations, the banking and finance sector, as well as the academic and university sector International organisations and third countries were represented as observers.

As one result of the GECES's work, they issued a report on social enterprises and the social economy going forward on 14 October 2016, giving input to the Commission's communication on the start-up and scale-up initiative

The Communication announced further actions focussing on the 5 pillars above mentioned; to help the Commission implement these 5 pillars the new expert group has been set-up.