When talking about social enterprise, we refer to companies or organizations implementing market strategies to achieve social objectives. Within the sphere of social enterprises there are both, for-profit organizations that use business models to achieve their mission and non-profit organization whose primary social purpose. These ventures set objectives that are both social / environmental and financial. Social enterprises are different from commercial enterprises as their social or environmental objectives are always within their operations and their motivations.

A social enterprise has the same organizational structure than a traditional business (or profit-maximizing EMB). It is handled similarly, employing workers, producing goods and services and selling them to customers at a price consistent with its objective, competing in competitive and free markets, possibly along with other EMB. One of the main differences would be that the goal of maximizing the social benefit overthrows that of achieving the maximum economic benefit.

A social enterprise is not a charity organization. They are companies like any other EMB and must recover all its costs without forgetting its social purpose. Therefore, the concept of social enterprise is based on the idea that running a business entails a form of acting and thinking very differently when it comes to a charity and, above all, the idea that a social enterprise should not depend on a steady stream of donations, but only needs a "push" to take flight and embark on a path to financial and operational self-sustainability.

The opportunities for the creation of social enterprises in Bolivia are potentially many, varied and in different fields:

Social enterprise in base of the pyramid markets

In this category fall, for example, social enterprises that make products addressing the needs of base of the pyramids markets. Also, technological ventures and / or energy ventures that provide access to the latest communications and information technology or renewable energy sources.

Social Enterprise to boost production

Social enterprises which fall under this heading may be directed to textiles for export and / or domestic marketing of textile production in different communities. Another route may be the ventures in timber; promoting sustainable timber production in different communities selling production under environmental standards and promoting community participation in the care and production of its timber areas.

Social Enterprise Platform

Among the items for social enterprise platform is that of information and consultancy. Enterprises engaged in the recollection of quantitative and qualitative information and consultancy for the development of microfinance.