The European Council of 21 July 2020 agreed on a far-reaching recovery package for the European Union, known as the European Union Recovery Instrument (NextGenerationEU), of which the two instruments, the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism (hereafter RRM) and the Recovery Assistance for Cohesion and Territories in Europe (REACT-EU), are part. The aim is to mitigate the economic and social impact of the pandemic and to make European economies and societies more sustainable and resilient and better prepared for the challenges and opportunities of the ecological and digital transitions.
As a consequence, the European Union adopted Council Regulation (EU) No 2020/2094 of 14 December 2020 and Regulation (EU) No 2021/241 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 February 2021 establishing the Resilience and Recovery Facility (RRM). This Facility is the centrepiece of the EU's extraordinary recovery measures.
As a result, the Spanish Government drew up the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, whose projects (hereinafter RTRP) are aimed at carrying out structural reforms through regulatory changes and investments and at transforming a more resilient structure that will enable our economic model to successfully face other possible crises or challenges in the future.
In order to contribute to these objectives, within the context of the RTRP, the PERTE (Strategic Project for the Recovery and Economic Transformation, as per its Spanish acronym) of the Social and Care Economy was approved. Its main goal is to promote the transformation of the strategic value chains of the Care and Social Economy sector, characterised by its multi-sectoral and transversal nature.
The ten Ministries participating in this PERTE, which will carry out actions to promote the Social Economy and the Care Economy, are:
The Ministry acts specifically through granting of subsidies. The development and execution of the different actions can be followed through the following link this link.
This PERTE comprises two different phases.
A first phase, concentrated in the period 2021-2023, endowed with over 800 million euros (of which around 805 million are derived from actions financed with RTRP funds and around 3 million with actions from the General National Budget),
2021-2023 period
and a second phase, following the approval of the agenda for the 2023-2026 Recovery Plan, the initial allocation for which was raised to 1,766 million euros, aimed at boosting the Social Economy and the Care Economy sector, and aimed at entities with social and equitable criteria that have a social welfare objective, promote community employment and defend the interests of diverse collectives.
2023-2026 period
As of October 2024, the total amount for this SPERT, following the conclusion of all activities by the ten ministerial departments involved, is 2,502 million euros.
Until October 2024
The interrelation between the different public and private actors and between the different areas of the General State Administration involved in the PERTE requires governance in order to make an adequate public-private partnership effective. To this end, the following levels of governance are articulated:
Public governance
Administrative coordination and inter-ministerial governance is necessary within the framework of PERTE, which, within the scope of the competences of each of the ministerial departments involved, enables decision-making under the transparency and accountability required by the public sector, through a working group set up for this purpose.
The inter-ministerial working group is chaired by the Second Vice-President of the Government and Minister of Labour and Social Economy. The vice-presidency is held by the Minister of Social Rights, Consumption and 2030 Agenda.
In its coordination and monitoring role, it is a system to monitor the compliance of the PERTE with the horizontal requirements of the State aid rules, the non-financing of recurrent expenditure and double funding. It is also foreseen that all MRR preventive funds will have a reinforced system to fight against fraud and conflicts of interest.
Public-private governance
The present PERTE has a strategic alliance that promotes public and private investments, through the coordinated action of public administrations, universities, research centres and entities and associations that include social economy entities.
The Alliance for the Social and Care Economy is chaired by the Second Vice-President and Minister of Labour and the Social Economy, who may delegate her functions to the person duly appointed, with the Vice-Presidency corresponding to the Minister of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and 2030 Agenda, whose functions may also be delegated.
Likewise, the Alliance with the participation of the Spanish Confederation of Social Economy Businesses (CEPES) as a relevant and representative stakeholder in the social economy, with the aim of providing information and guidance, taking advantage of the experience and knowledge of its members, in order to bring closer the concerns and needs of the entities that make up the social economy.
In conclusion, this PERTE aims to achieve the following objectives through 9 lines of action.
Aim 1
The promotion and development of the Social Economy in Spain and its potential for transformation.
1.1 Line of action
Business Transformations to Social Economy models to maintain Enterprises and Jobs.
1.2 Line of action
Improving competitiveness among Social Economy SMEs, in order to face the digital and environmental transformation with more security.
1.3 Line of action
Promote the development of advanced inter-cooperation mechanisms in Social Economy SMEs to ensure sustainability.
Aim 2
The development and promotion of advanced, accessible and person-centred care services.
2.1 Line of action
Professionalisation of the health and long-term care sector.
2.2 Line of action
Measures to support the fight against the demographic challenge.
2.3 Line of action
Education, qualification and digital and sustainable re-qualification.
2.4 Line of action
Data Space for the common good and social innovation.
2.5 Line of action
Digital tool to facilitate contact between consumers and producers for the sale and distribution of agri-food products in local markets.
2.6 Line of action
Measures for the promotion and encouragement of gender equality.
Aim 3
Development of the Social Economy Cutting-Edge HUB.
Click here to access the Framework Agreement between the Ministry of Labour and Social Economy (MITES), and the Spanish Confederation for Social Economy Businesses (CEPES) for the definition of the legal regime of the collaboration for the creation of the Social Economy Cutting-Edge HUB.
Please click here to access the Royal Decree for the direct award of a grant to the Spanish Social Economy Business Confederation (CEPES, standing for Confederación Empresarial Española de la Economía Social) for the creation of a cutting-edge Hub. This will bring together research, generate synergies between actors and promote networks of action in the social economy, thus impacting not only the Spanish ecosystem but also the European and international ones.
