The Portuguese Social Innovation Initiative: The Social Impacts Bonds Programme Using ESF to finance Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship

This publication explains pioneering European Social Fund (ESF) financing instruments in Portugal that are being implemented during the 2014-2020 programming period through a Social Innovation Initiative with the special focus on the Social Impact Bonds Programme. The study had two main objectives:

1. To provide practical guidance to other Member States willing to implement this type of financing mechanism under the ESF, during the current 2014-2020 programming period;
2. To provide lessons learned and recommendations that could be used as evidence-based inputs for supporting the European Commission in the design of the regulatory framework for the next programming period, namely concerning innovative ESF financing mechanisms.