The popular and solidarity economy: analysis of the regulatory framework and its implications

Abstract

The Montecristi Constitution of 2008 marked a milestone in the reconfiguration of the social, economic and political dynamics of Ecuador. The new Constitution opened the way to the recognition of rights and practices that were made invisible within Ecuadorian regulations, the case of the popular and solidarity economy is one of the clearest examples. Since the validity of said Constitution to date, several normative bodies have been promulgated that have sought to regulate, control and promote the popular and solidary sector, having as a final objetive the consolidation of a social and solidary economy system in Ecuador. The document is based on a qualitative methodology, which involved the work of filing, reviewing, and analyzing documents and bibliographic sources, which was complemented with the gathering of primary information through semi-structured interviews with key informants, such as assembly members and social actors of Social and Solidarity Economy organizations. As the main conclusion, it was found that the dynamics of control institutionally deployed over the EPS sector were greater than those of promotion and strengthening, and although there was a quantitative growth of the organizations, the constitution and qualitative advance of the sector was affected, by not promoting the solidarity values that characterize it.