Assessment of the Dynamics and Structure of the Romanian Social Economy

The current paper contributes to the debate on social economy by highlighting the significance of the legal framework in the correct assessment of the structure and dynamics of the social economy of a country, providing evidence for Romania. The study presents the real dimension of Romanian social economy in the light of the new laws in the field and reveals the social enterprises’ profile. Findings show that, two years after the legal framework of the social enterprise and one year after the regulation of the Romanian Register of Social Enterprises, few operators of the social economy took the necessary steps for the official registration in the category of social enterprises. By analyzing the profile of certified social enterprises, we have shown that they are vulnerable from at least two points of view: viability (only 19% of the certified social enterprises have developed activities on a sustainable bases, having more than three years old) and efficiency (more than a third of the social enterprises go through financial difficulties from/after the first year of function). The analysis of the output indicator that measures the evolution of the average number of employees in the social enterprises showed a modest increase. Lastly, the study draws attention on the need to reconsider the national statistics regarding social economy.