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The event, organized by the Social Economy Chair of the TecnoCampus and the Mataró City Council with the support of the Barcelona Provincial Council, had the participation of different agents of the social economy and the municipal public administration.
Last Wednesday, November 20, the 5th Meeting of Social Economy Companies took place at the TecnoCampus, which has dedicated this year's edition to responsible public procurement. The event has been organized by the Social Economy Chair of the TecnoCampus and Mataró City Council, with the support of Barcelona Provincial Council. Eloi Serrano, director of the Chair, was in charge of opening the meeting, emphasizing the importance for social economy companies that public administration promotes responsible public procurement. In his speech, Serrano announced that the Chair he directs will participate in a project that will consist of the creation of the Center for Studies for Strategic and Responsible Contracting in Catalonia, together with Facto Cooperativa SCCL, L'Escamot SCCL and the Youth Association Cultural Ariadna, thanks to a grant from the Generalitat de Catalunya's Unique Projects.
Sergi Morales, second deputy mayor and councilor for Employment and Business and Social Economy of Mataró City Council, emphasized the role of social economy companies in the economic fabric of the city, the region and the country. The councilor explained the different actions that his council is promoting in terms of social economy in the city, and recalled that the City Council uses the tool of reserved contracts, for example in cases like the management of the Cafè de Mar or the collection of bulky objects, which develop social economy companies in the city.
This was followed by a round table moderated by professor and member of the Chair of Social Economy Miguel Guillén. Julio Martínez, who for many years was the president of the Federation of Special Employment Centers of Catalonia (FECETC) and has promoted numerous social economy projects throughout his career, recalled the difficulties faced by companies social economy when opting for public tenders. Next, Kiko Montoro, partner and employee of Coop de Pedal SCCL, a non-profit associated work cooperative that was born in 2018 to offer bike courier services, cycle logistics and training in the city of Mataró and the region, pointed out that competing with larger commercial companies, it is complicated for this type of company.
Sílvia Lizana, Social Economy technician at the Mataró City Council, pointed out that measures have been applied in recent years to encourage responsible public purchasing from the department of Purchases and Contracts of the council. Finally, Marc Vilanova, responsible for the public procurement area of Facto Cooperativa SCCL, explained in detail the difficulties that currently exist for social economy companies when submitting to public tenders, and insisted in the need to promote strategic and responsible public procurement.