(Finance) – “For a Europe struggling with challenges such as the drop in competitiveness, the fragmentation of international trade and the escalation of geopolitical tensions, which make the need to strengthen economic resilience and competitiveness, with a strong attention to the green transition and sustainable growth, cooperative companies, which, which they put people in the center and generate long -term value and employmentwell -being for communities and social cohesion, they can offer a fundamental contribution to the achievement of these objectives if they are placed, in the most overall context of the social economy, in the center of the political agenda of the European Union, with the definition of a political and regulatory framework that enhances its role and favors its development, not penalizing them with respect to other forms of business “.
It is the message delivered by Simone Gamberini, president of Legacoop, To the representatives of the EU institutions who participated in “Cooperatives, driving force for competitiveness and social cohesion in Europe”, the meeting hosted by the representation of the Emilia-Romagna Region at the European Union, dedicated to deepening, through a comparison that involved numerous active cooperatives in important supply chains of industry and agri-food, critical issues relating to competitiveness, innovation, sustainability, and central role, of cooperatives in the future of the industrial and agri -food sector in Europe.
“The cooperatives -he underlined Michele De Pascale, president of the Emilia-Romagna Region– They represent one of the pillars of the Emilia-Romagna economic model, which combines growth and social cohesion, innovation and sustainability. Our cooperative system is a leading reality at European and international level, with companies operating in strategic sectors such as agri -food, advanced manufacture, personal services and welfare, logistics and large -scale distribution. THEAnd Emilia-Romagna cooperatives not only successfully compete in global markets, but contribute decisively to the economic resilience and the social estate of the communities. At a time when Europe has to face complex challenges, from geopolitical tensions to duties threatened by the United States, to the need for greater strategic autonomy, the role of cooperative companies becomes even more central; For this reason, it is important today more than ever concretizing a European strategy that enhances them, guaranteeing adequate tools to compete on a global scale, subsidized access to funding and a regulatory framework that recognizes its specificity. Emilia-Romagna, with its long tradition of cooperation and its role of European economic hub, is alongside the cooperative system because it is at the center of the EU political agenda “.
Gamberini recalled the Convinced support for Legacoop to the European integration process And, referring to the current challenge of common defense, he underlined how this must be addressed by keeping together the common foreign policy, economic and cultural relations with non -EU countries starting with the “neighbors”, not renouncing the founding values of Europe. “The need to share common expenses for the defense – he said – cannot mean giving up our economic and productive model, to support investments for innovation and growth, to maintain our welfare model and social innovation, strengthening social protections as an element of safety and stability. Legacoop and associated cooperatives feel the urgency to keep together the challenge of competitiveness and social cohesion with the protection of a story based on principles and values of respect for human, social and civil rights and the fundamental freedoms of people “.
Hence the reaffirmation of the commitment of the cooperatives to do their part for the achievement of the EU’s economic and social objectives, and the request to the EU institutions to recognize their potential, in line with the provisions of the action plan for the social economy, which explicitly recognizes the cooperative form between the subjects who are part of it, as they share its distinctive elements: the primacy of the person and the social purpose compared to the profit, the reinvestment of the profit, useful for carrying out activities of collective and general interest, democratic and participatory governance.
The EU should proceed with a revision of its legislation, with the goal of creating a competitive environment, For example, through the revision of competition policies, legislative simplification, facilitation to access to funding and the creation of European champions in strategic sectors.
On the concrete level, there are numerous subjects subject to regulation that affect the cooperatives and which should be adequately oriented to grasp their peculiarities.
For example, the vision of the European Commission to strengthen the competitiveness and resilience of the EU industry, outlined in the Clean Industrial Deal and in the Effortable Energy Action Plan, must consider all aspects and parts of the value chain, guaranteeing a right and sustainable transformation. The investments necessary for the clean transition require immediate access to capital, especially for small companies and industries.
Clear guidelines are also necessary to help cooperative companies to access funding, through public contracts and investments, rules on state aid and public-private partnerships. For example, in the framework of the process of assessing the revision of the directive on public procurement, it gives priority to innovation, social impact and effectiveness with respect to the lower offer, would create equal conditions in which cooperatives focused on sustainability and innovation can grow.
In the framework of competition policies, the model of cooperative company Phe would have to promote samples and exploit the economies of scale in strategic sectors, such as digital and artificial intelligence. The creation of horizontal cooperative groups that include small and medium-sized cooperative throughout the EU could contribute to achieving this objective by attracting know-how, skills and resources, provided that this model is recognized and supported by policy makers both in the EU and nationally.
As for the agri -food sectorwhere the cooperative model is widely adopted and with an added value of over 400 billion euros represents about 2% of the total GDP, Agro -food cooperatives play a fundamental role in promoting the resilience of the sector, but also in strengthening its role as a pillar of rural, social and economic cohesion and guaranteeing long -term competitiveness in the sector. In the general context of EU policies for the sector, which also recognized the role of cooperation in the Vision for Agriculture and Food, more decisive and targeted interventions are necessary, for example, on new genomic techniques, harmonizing the regulations between the Member States and committing themselves with retailers to create trust and reduce barriers to the market for the products transformed with NGT.
In this context, moreover, the negotiations for the Common agricultural policy (PAC) 2028-2034 They should create a path towards a qualifying European regulatory framework that considers the cooperative reality and aims to further exploit the numerous advantages that this model brings to the sector. In particular, considering that farmers have a fundamental need to support to modernize their infrastructures, adopt more sustainable and competitive practices, the Pac budget in the post-2027 QFP should be increased in order to reflect inflation and the growing demand on agriculture.