The National Statistics Institute of Luxembourg, STATEC, has published a study concerning the evaluation of the Social and Solidarity Economy Sector in the country, promoted by the Department of Social and Solidarity Eoncomy (Statnews n°13-2014 of 8 April 2014).
This survey clearly shows that the Social and Solidarity Economy Sector in Luxembourg involved 25.000 employs in 2011, representing about the 7% of the amount of the salaried employs and its growth has turn out to be extremely strong (after 2000 the impact of the sector is almost doubled).
The authors of this survey acknowledge that certain methodological constraints “undoubtedly lead to an underestimation of the actual size of the social and solidarity economy”. Along with that the tendency to limit the analysis to structures such as NGOs, foundations, mutual aid associations and cooperatives, contributes to further underestimate the size of the social and solidarity economy, considering that Luxemburg has adopted other criteria than the statutes in order to define the boundaries of social and solidarity economy.
An ad hoc tool such as an Observatory, can allow to have a better vision of the SSE and can represent an useful reference for the actors themselves as well as for the public powers.
This study can be consulted on the website of the ULESS – Union luxembourgeoise de l’économie sociale et solidaire (in French): www.uless.lu