Paper short abstract:

This paper explores how the co-operative movement in Ecuador has evolved and changed since the official adoption of the ‘Vivir Bien’ paradigm and the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) as development pathways.

Paper long abstract:

Ecuador's socioeconomic landscape has changed since Rafael Correa became president in 2007. Correa's government promotes the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) and its organisations (i.e. co-operatives, mutual societies and community-based organizations). Since 2008 the National Constitution recognises and advocates both the SSE as a developmental path to tackle poverty and the 'Buen Vivir' paradigm.

Co-operatives in developing countries are well known for their inclusive nature, resilient structure and ability to improve peoples' livelihoods. Unlike mutual societies and community-based organizations, co-operatives have been present in Ecuador since the late 1930s and since 2008 have had a great deal of support from the government. However, there is little evidence-based research that attests to any significant change experienced by co-operatives with regards to their ability to innovate on inclusive terms, furthermore the relationships between the 'Buen Vivir', the SSE and the Ecuadorian co-operative movement have been widely underexplored. This paper seeks to fill these gaps by critically analysing the extent to which the Ecuadorian co-operative movement has changed since 2007 and if so what it has meant for co-operatives and their ability to innovate in inclusive terms.

The analysis of the Ecuadorian co-operative movement offers the possibility to understand the salient implications of adopting the 'Buen Vivir' and its impact on social innovation. The paper draws on qualitative and quantitative data, the former has been collected between June 2015 to March 2016 and consist of focus groups and in-depth interviews with representative of co-operatives, whereas the latter is historical and statistical in nature.