Social entrepreneurship

"Through empowerment we will get stronger..."

What is social entrepreneurship?

Social entrepreneurship is a type of business activity based on the dedication of people whose main goal is to solve a certain problem. Enterprises established on the basis of this type of entrepreneurship retain a certain part of the income in order to continue their activities, and use the remaining income to solve social problems.Social entrepreneurship is a business approach to solving social problems in society, and its success is measured not only by the income received, but also by the success of the social mission.

The base principles are related to the progress of society:

To have a positive impact on the lives of vulnerable groups in society;
To give impetus to the development of society by realising the potential of these groups.

Thus, it is a business activity that stems from social responsibility and is aimed at solving community issues.

Social enterprise and the public sector

Social enterprises earn more than half of their income through commercial activities, and spend their profits primarily for social purposes, with the priority of having an impact on social development, affirm social responsibility along with group activities to generate income for society. The goal is not to make business stand out from competitors, but to have a positive impact and all work is carried out within the framework of transparency. Everyone involved in the project is aware of any developments at any time and is free to access all research reports conducted before and during the project. Some unprecedented problems may arise during the projects, but they continue to be carried out with due diligence, despite all such problems.

There are a number of qualities social entrepreneurship possess which align with young people’s interests, such as:

Discovering an innovative and investigative spirit
Promoting courage and self-confidence
Persuasion
Financial management
Developing effective communication, etc.

Social entrepreneurship education

Education in this field aims to develop sensitivity to social issues and practice empathy. It also intends to train future innovators and entrepreneurs. It is important for this type of program to be offered by voluntary organisations for it to be accessible to everyone. NGOs, by engaging in voluntary activities to solve community problems and playing an active role in raising public awareness, share the core values with social entrepreneurs. Through training and activities in the field of social entrepreneurship, “Cigir” NGO for the development of moral values coaches a team of volunteers in this field, moves towards increasing social usefulness and supporting development, and encourages other representatives to do the same.

Social entrepreneurship in “Cigir”

We realised that social entrepreneurship, like social services can be implemented in any sector. As a public union, our activity includes enriching young people with the relevant skills and assist them to see, hear and express social problems, to bring innovative ideas. At the same time, we also focus on cooperating with individuals, associations and organisations who aim to achieve large-scale progressive changes. We hold training sessions and seminars with students of different disciplines to cultivate young people with social entrepreneurship skills and instill the importance of variety in this field. Awareness of social problems, determination and perseverance, responsibility and risk-taking, creativity, ability to work in a team, desire for research and self-improvement are the required qualities of a social entrepreneur. It is the ample evidence of the trainings’ positive outcome that there is a growth and development on our social entrepreneurship projects, about which you can find here. Young people who have been brought up to have a positive impact on the societal progress without expecting anything in return successfully take steps forward.

Volunteers and social entrepreneurship

Our young people, who work voluntarily in “Cigir”, strengthen communication skills among different groups, both in their personal lives and in society; help to build a safer and stronger community; enhance social interaction; support active lifestyle; encourage participation in social assistance projects; assist secondary school students with their education and career path; engage in environmental activities; boost people’s self-esteem and develop various skills.

As a public union supporting the development of moral values, holding onto our vision of "compassion", we consider ourselves responsible for the development of social entrepreneurship. We try to expand our impact of catering towards a noble cause, especially the upbringing of the younger generation.