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Honourable President of the Installation Committee
Honourable Entrepreneurs
Ladies and Gentlemen

It is with great personal satisfaction that I take part in the launching of the Association of Entrepreneurs for Social Inclusion, an initiative which I have backed from the very beginning and of which I am very pleased to have accepted to become an Honourable Member.

I have exerted myself in order that, in Portuguese society, apart from their due rights, a civic culture of responsibility should be increasingly asserted, in which every one understands that his duties (and also benefits) are to contribute towards the development of the Country.

This civic culture of responsibility cannot leave behind the more vulnerable social groups, those that tend to slide to the margins of a society which wants to be competitive and dynamic, but equally fair and including.

This was what led me to propose to Parliament, on the XXXII anniversary of April 25, a civic commitment for social inclusion and, later, to launch the Route for inclusion.

Contrary to what our proverbial scepticism could tell us, I have always believed in the vitality of the so-called civil society and in its capacity to organize itself to supply an answer, without waiting for the State to act, to many of the problems that collectively afflict us.

Yet I must confess that I have been pleasantly surprised with many of the examples of good practices that I have found in the fight against social exclusion, with the notable work which is being carried out by thousands of voluntaries all over the country, and with the individual and collective answer that I have noticed in several sectors of Portuguese society. I follow with great expectation the setting up of the “National Confederation for Voluntary Service”.

The setting up of the Association of Entrepreneurs for Social Inclusion is a relevant example of social conscience and civic maturity.

If, on one hand, entrepreneurs have the right to demand a favourable background for the development of their activities when generating value and creating wealth, it is also true that those who have succeeded must have the generosity to contribute towards the improvement of the society in which they are inserted, giving back to it, in some way, a share in their success.

It is curious to note that, in the theory of management, there is an increasing weight in the idea that enterprises can, simultaneously, create value and social fairness, and that there is no conflict between economic well-being and their acting as agents for the improvement of the society they are a part of. This is an approach defended by the new “gurus” of company management, inclusion capitalism. In a recent edition of Business Week it can be read that, in these days, the philanthropy of enterprises tends to be seen more as a competitive factor than just a mere obligation. .

There are already quite a number of Portuguese enterprises for which the social dimension is a relevant component of their activity. As happened in other countries – although knowing that fortunes, in Portugal, are far removed from those which can be found in rich countries – it is expected that, increasingly, our successful entrepreneurs give visible examples of sharing and equitable behaviour, contributing personally so that the new generations benefit from a fairer, cohesive and progressive Portugal. I believe that gestures of this kind can contribute to the substitution by ambition and the will to win through work for the sense of envy often attributed to the Portuguese people.

I concur with what The Economist magazine wrote about the decision of billionaire Warren Buffet to donate 31 billion dollars to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: “those that want to practice good philanthropy do it, as far as possible, when alive, since in that way they can ensure a more efficient use of their donations”.

The success of entrepreneurs, in the respect for laws and for ethical principles, can only be an asset to the Country. Find us a wealthy country, without the luck of possessing mineral riches, in which there are no business men who accumulated large fortunes?

If, to the capacity of successful entrepreneurs, should be added the human grandeur of a philanthropic attitude, Portuguese society will be doubly benefited, For this reason, whoever wishes the welfare of Portugal and of the Portuguese cannot be inhibited in asserting that we need more and not less successful entrepreneurs, a success, I repeat, built on the respect for laws and for ethical principles, and to which I would add: successful entrepreneurs sensitive to the altruistic appeal for action.

The Association of Entrepreneurs for Social Inclusion, the constitution of which is celebrated today, does not have a protectionist approach, but is guided towards the production of results. Its priorities are to intervene in the fight against school abandonment and to provide incentives for entrepreneurship amongst youth, where it meets issues and gaps which assume, amongst us and in the current context, singular gravity. When contributing to improve the qualification of human resources and the conditions for providing employment, it reaches one of the main factors of social exclusion. On the other hand, in the “new philanthropy” feature, the Association will exert itself in the success of the projects for which it provides finance, through adequate follow up means and control.

I believe we have to be more ambitious in Portugal, fighting against social exclusion, preventing and enabling, acting upon the future, systematically and continuously. And the new generations are the future. The Association should thus be praised when proposing to start with our children and our schools, because that is where the difference lies.

I applaud the Installing Committee for the work already completed.

I salute the entrepreneurs and managers who answered promptly to the altruistic appeal to set up the Association of Entrepreneurs for Social Inclusion. I hope more will proceed likewise. They are creditors of my appreciation, not only for the generosity shown, but also for the modern view which they are being proof of: an enterprise may, simultaneously, create value and social fairness. The founding members well understood the relevance of the challenge which was being launched at Portuguese entrepreneurs. This answer exactly ranks with the writings of Prof. Jorge Dias concerning the fundamental traits of Portuguese culture: “The Portuguese are highly individualistic, but have a deep feeling for human solidarity”.

Your answer, honourable entrepreneurs, is an important contribution for a more developed Portugal and, at the same time, with increased social fairness, which I, as President of the Republic, want to help in building. Thank you very much.