Crowdfunding as a driver of social entrepreneurship: Evidence from Morocco

Abstract

Abstract

Financial crises, the digital revolution and ethical imperatives are shaking up business models. More and more organizations are turning to hybrid structures seeking a socio-environmental impact beyond mere profit (Dees, 1998; Nicholls, 2010). Social entrepreneurship is establishing itself as a vector for jobs, cohesion and the achievement of the SDGs (Martin & Osberg, 2007; Benhaddouch & El Fathaoui, 2022). In Morocco, the New Development Model is fuelling this dynamic, but access to financing remains limited: traditional banks provide little funding for projects with a social mission (Drissi S. , 2017). Crowdfunding can offer an inclusive financing alternative, in the form of small sums collected from a multitude of Internet users (Belleflamme, Omrani, & Peitz, 2015). This alternative mode of financing began with platforms located outside Morocco (Middle East, USA, France) that finance Moroccan and non-Moroccan projects (OUDRAY & BERRAD, 2023). As of 2021, Morocco adopted law 15-18 to organize crowdfunding operations in Morocco and enable collaborators to operate on favorable ground and in a secure climate (OUDRAY & BERRAD, 2023).

This paper asks: What is the impact of Crowdfunding on social entrepreneurship in Morocco?  In other words, our study will look at how participatory financing presents attractive features to encourage social entrepreneurship, offering solutions to the challenges of access to finance.

Due to the nature of our future study, we will adopt a qualitative approach using semi-structured interviews with Crowdfunding platforms and project owners who have benefited from this type of funding. This method will enable us to explore and assess the potential of Crowdfunding to stimulate the creation of impact businesses that will contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Keywords: Crowdfunding, social entrepreneurship, SDG.