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School of Social 
Entrepreneurship
Rosar io
PROMOTING THE SOCIAL AND SOLIDARITY ECONOMY
Summary
As a result of the global socio- with the aim of offering training The programme consists of 
economic crisis and its effects and mentoring to personal, family two phases: a first phase of 
in Argentina in particular, the and associative entrepreneurial technical training and a second 
city of Rosario has observed a projects in the six districts phase of support and guidance 
growing number of people who of the city, with an approach for these endeavours. Additional 
are excluded from the formal based on popular education. In training spaces adapted to 
labour market and who try to particular, it focuses on profiles specific needs are also offered 
generate income on their own with certain levels of vulnerability (entrepreneurship with a feminist 
through self-employment, based and social exclusion, as well as perspective, and support for 
on their knowledge and skills. low capitalisation, who need cooperatives and self-managed 
Against this backdrop, in 2015, support and guidance to enable neighbourhood fairs/markets). 
the Sub-Directorate of Social greater economic, social and 
Economy, under the Ministry of environmental sustainability. 
Human Development and Habitat, Among these are productive The 
carried out an assessment to sectors linked to food production City: city of Rosario 
better understand this reality, and traditional crafts; services Rosario has been a member 
and identified the need to design related to care for people and Country: of the IAEC since 1996  
a strategy that offers support to environmental sustainability Argentina and is coordinatingrican 
entrepreneurs in the creation and (recycling, urban waste Inhabitants: the Latin Ameation
strengthening of their projects. collectors, etc.); and trades in 948.312 Deleg
demand within neighbourhoods 
Within the framework of (electricians, blacksmiths, Topics: 
this strategy called ‘Rosario plumbers, etc.). Job stimulus, Work placement, 
Emprende’ [‘Rosario Gender Equality, Community 
Ventures’], the School of Social development
Entrepreneurship was created, 
Goals 
X Foster socio-economic inclusion through the X Reinforce the subjectivity and economic rights 
self-managed employment of people and groups of women by way of a cross-cutting educational 
in vulnerable situations, by way of training and approach that incorporates a gender perspective 
support for their entrepreneurial projects. and feminist economics.
X Strengthen the economic, social and 
environmental sustainability of the entrepreneurial 
projects participating in the programme. 
X Promote personal and community development, 
making use of their own knowledge and skills, 
based on a pedagogic approach of popular 
education, empowerment, and the values of the 
social and solidarity economy. 
X Strengthen the community fabric and the links 
among entrepreneurial initiatives by productive 
sector, in order to address common challenges and 
critical issues through the promotion of exchanges, 
inter-cooperation and mutual support.
Context 
According to the latest available census (2010), children and are the sole providers in the 
Rosario has 948,312 inhabitants. The city is household. For the most part, they undertake 
located in an urbanised area of 107.98 km2 subsistence economic activities, diversified 
within a total municipal area of 178.69 km2, and across various sectors. In addition to the care 
has a population density of 5,089 inhabitants/ work they carry out in the home, they also 
km2. make use of their skills and abilities (mainly 
in cooking and handicrafts) in enterprises that 
The production structure of Rosario and its allow them to maintain and/or complement 
metropolitan area is made up of a multiplicity their family economies from their homes and 
of activities that bring together traditional neighbourhoods.
agro-industrial branches and information and 
communication technologies, the service sector, Most of the School’s male participants opt for 
and a highly competitive food industry. Rosario various trades and services (blacksmithing, 
is an industrial and service centre that counts on carpentry, construction, home maintenance/
permanent developments within its productive, repair services, etc.). They participate in the 
tourist, recreational and scientific sectors. programme either because they have chosen 
self-employment or as a consequence of their 
The majority of the participants in the School expulsion from the formal labour market and the 
of Social Entrepreneurship are women (75% difficulties of reintegration.
of the total). Many of them have dependent 
Methodology
Access to the programme is granted through an in- In addition, the School organises additional 
depth interview as an assessment. The participants spaces and tools aiming to respond to other needs 
interviewed are referred to the most appropriate identified, such as:
phase of the programme according to their 
needs, in a process that takes place continuously X ‘Juntas Hacemos Economía’ [‘Let’s Create 
throughout the year. an Economy Together’] workshops. Training 
cycle on topics related to feminist economics, 
The School of Social Entrepreneurship implements aimed at reinforcing the subjectivity and economic 
its programme through a methodology based autonomy of women who lead family businesses. 
on popular education, which is delivered in two The group dimension and the strengthening of 
phases: sustainable community processes are fostered 
(community banking, associative marketing, 
1. Training programme ‘The ABC of my cooperative professionalisation of care tasks, 
entrepreneurship’. This consists of five among others). 
theoretical-practical modules, where simple 
and practical tools for the management of a X Business incubation days for cooperative 
family, individual and/or collective enterprise are fairs or markets. Cycle of three theoretical-
developed. Participants learn to design the key practical workshops aimed at pre-cooperative 
components of their project’s business model, groups that express the will to organise a collective 
using their own knowledge and skills, and based and self-managed commercialisation process in 
on exchanges with other participants. Prominence the format of a neighbourhood fair or market. 
is given to matters such as: designing products or Throughout the sessions, a pedagogic approach 
services to make them attractive in the market, is used to enable the group to articulate its 
assigning a fair price to cover production costs, own working rules, and establish its governing 
and key elements of the marketing strategy. bodies and operational agreements. The process 
Participants must integrate all they have learnt into culminates with the signing of an agreement with 
a clear, understandable and attractive business the Municipality of Rosario that enables them to set 
proposal. Those who complete the programme up the fair or market, in a self-managed manner, 
receive an initial support grant, which can be used in the square of their choice and with the agreed 
for a first purchase of materials, or an initial basic regularity. 
allocation to strengthen their working capital.
The School of Social Entrepreneurship works in 
2. Rounds of technical tutorials and coordination with other local actors such as the 
collaborative work. The projects designed in the National University of Rosario, the Food Institute 
first phase are grouped by categories (food, design, (dependent on Public Health), and the Ministry of 
services, etc.), so that participants may take part in Gender and Human Rights. 
rounds of collective tutorials, called ‘comunidades 
de emprendizaje’ [‘entrepreneurial learning 
communities’], in a bid to delve deeper into the 
course content, resolve technical queries with the 
help of specialised advisors, and present a final 
proposal bringing together the content learnt. If 
they complete the rounds of tutorials in this second 
phase, the projects receive a complementary 
incentive to contribute to capacity building.
Evaluation
Since it was set up in 2016, more than producers and consumers closer together, 
6,000 individual and family entrepreneurs demonstrating the quality of their products and 
have participated in the School’s educational services, and the dignified work it generates. 
programmes. These participants have designed Along the same lines, in 2021, the School has 
over 600 enterprises. The project has also fostered begun to implement a training course on Social, 
the creation of 12 self-managed cooperative fairs Solidarity, Popular and Community Economy 
and markets in the different districts of the city. (124 hours in duration) for the technical team of 
the Sub-Directorate of Social Economy, in order 
In a qualitative dimension, participants point to encourage reflection on new debates and 
out that their time at the School has boosted emerging concepts. 
their confidence in their own capacities and their 
entrepreneurial projects, resulting in higher levels The main difficulties encountered are related 
of autonomy and professionalisation of their to the volume of people and projects attended 
activities. Further, positive dynamics of peer- to and the complexity of the Argentine socio-
to-peer connections have been identified that economic context, coupled with the serious 
go beyond the training cycle, taking the form of scenario generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, 
inter-cooperation initiatives among projects in the which has made it necessary to offer training in 
same district, with a high community impact and virtual format. This has highlighted the “digital 
transformative potential (for example, women who divide” that exists within the groups served by 
participate in the initial training and decide to set the programme. In a bid to overcome these 
up a cooperative market in their neighbourhood, challenges, the School is attempting to strengthen 
while continuing to participate in training actions inter-cooperation processes among entrepreneurs, 
with a feminist perspective). and offer training adapted to their needs (digital 
marketing strategies, electronic means of 
The School also contributes to raising awareness payment, etc.). 
about the added value of the social and solidarity 
economy among the general public by bringing 
Future proposals
The strengthening of an innovative line of work 
introduced in 2021 is foreseen: the ‘Rosario 
Emprende’ Microcredit Revolving Fund; which 
aims to bolster and consolidate enterprises with 
a certain level of capitalisation, through the 
granting of solidarity microcredits at a subsidised 
rate, across three segmented lines of credit (food, 
textile/design, and services and trades). This 
instrument, financed with funds from the National 
Ministry of Social Development, will be managed 
by the School’s team drawing on a specific strategy 
(credit cycle).
Contact
Organisation:  Rosario City Council         
(Sub-secretariat of Social Economy)
Contact Person: Ms. Marta Sánchez Miñarro 
(Director)
E-mail: msanch15@rosario.gob.ar
View the 
experience in the 
Bank
edcities.org