TRANSCENDENCE OF COOPERATIVES IN SUSTAINABLE SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN THE BASQUE COUNTRY

The main reference of the Social Economy (SE) is the cooperative enterprise. In the Basque Country (BC), cooperatives have always represented a significant percentage of SE entities. In addition, the BCis among the highest-ranked territories in the world in terms of industrial entrepreneurial development in SE. Traditionally, Basque cooperatives have been concerned with meeting the needs of their members and with their active participation, taking into account the community around them. The values and principles governing these companies have been the economic driving force of the BC evenin times of economic crisis. These values and principles arekey instruments for working together to achieve the purposes of several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Proof of this are the cooperative principles that, for more than half a century haveguided Mondragon Corporation Cooperative (MCC), a world benchmark of the Basque Cooperative Movement (BCM). This research aims to analyse the features of the BCM and its impact on the sustainable socio-economic development in the BC from the perspective of the 2030 UN Agenda for Sustainable Development (UN2030 Agenda).