Social Capital as an Inclusion Tool from a Solidarity Finance Angle

Juanita Salinas,Susana Sastre-Merino

doi:10.3390/su13137067

Abstract

Within rural environments, the construction of financial ecosystems that both stimulate local development and contribute to poverty reduction requires an increase in associative community activity. Such activity serves as a fundamental means of organizing territorial production systems, reinforcing capacities, and strengthening the negotiating position of the population being offered financial services. Solidarity finance is important because it recognizes that collective action and criteria such as social efficiency, local capacities, cooperation, associativity, the social fabric, self-management, and resource recirculation are integral aspects of financial evaluation. Therefore, this research proposes a methodology to reinforce the financial service delivery of solidarity finance institutions through the evaluation of social capital in rural production organizations. Social capital is regarded as a resource of the organization’s constituents that can facilitate financial inclusion and generate value for rural populations.

Highlights

In the present context of accelerated and complex transformation, economic and social exclusion are global problems
Positive social capital endowment provides conditions that are conducive to an inclusive financial process and reinforces the population’s capacity to engage in social learning [63], improve risk management, supply conventional contracts, function within collateral relationships, and work as a trustworthy source of information This perspective highlights the importance of evaluating the social capital of a rural production organization and including it in the financial service delivery methodology as a resource that supports the activity of small rural producers
Validation included the results of local development studies and solidarity finance research that, through factorial analysis, showed the relevance of including socioorganizational variables in risk evaluation and financial service delivery for a rural population [37]

Summary

Introduction

In the present context of accelerated and complex transformation, economic and social exclusion are global problems. Positive social capital endowment provides conditions that are conducive to an inclusive financial process and reinforces the population’s capacity to engage in social learning [63], improve risk management, supply conventional contracts, function within collateral relationships, and work as a trustworthy source of information This perspective highlights the importance of evaluating the social capital of a rural production organization and including it in the financial service delivery methodology as a resource that supports the activity of small rural producers.

Methodology

Analytical Approximation for Evaluating the Social Capital Endowment of Rural

Case Study Application

Procedures

Final Considerations