Increasingly, social enterprises are providing creative solutions - - PDF document

Presentation of the REPORT ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF RES. 71/221 "ENTREPRENEURSHIP FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT" The United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 71/221 Entrepreneurship for Sustainable Development on 21 December 2016. This resolution recognizes the important

contribution entrepreneurship makes to sustainable development by creating jobs and driving economic growth and innovation, improving social conditions, and addressing social and environmental challenges in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable

• Development. It stresses the need for a comprehensive and holistic approach to

entrepreneurship that includes long-term and cross-sectoral strategies. The report on the implementation of resolution 71/221, prepared by UNCTAD in collaboration with DBSA, focuses on four different aspects: Chapter 2: It illustrates good practices in the formulation and implementation

• fentrepreneurship policies.

Chapter 3: It highlights the emergence of initiatives aimed at promoting regional cooperation and enhancing the effectiveness of entrepreneurial eco systems at the city level. Chapter 4: It illustrates initiatives and best practices on policy measures for social entrepreneurship promotion. Chapter 5: It highlights the importance of tools to monitor the progress on policy implementation and

• f indicators

to measure the impact

• f

entrepreneurship policies on economic growth and the SDG implementation. Chapter 2: Review of good practices in the formulation and implementation of entrepreneurship policies in terms ofthe 6 pillars ofthe Entrepreneurship Policy Framework: First: Formulating national entrepreneurship strategy

Governments of several countries have made efforts to design and implement entrepreneurship policies as a part oftheir national economic development strategies. Pursuant to resolution 71/221, UNCTAD contmued to provide support in partnership to Member States upon their requests, on the formulation and implementation of entrepreneiorshippolicy measures and the promotion ofMSMEs based on the Entrepreneurship Policy Framework including Cameroon, DR, Ecuador, Ethiopia,

Gambia and Tanzania,

One important aspect ofa growing role ofentrepreneurship policies is linked to the recent proliferation ofindustrial policies - 84 new industrial policies since 2013 - as documented in the WIR 2018. In this regard one recent good practices is cooperation between UNIDO and UNCTAD on UNIDO's Youth and Women Entreprenemrship project (YoWep) in Ethiopia. One significant trend over the last 2 years is the enhance policymaking cooperation on MSMEs and entreprenership at the global level

For example:

• UNCTAD facilitated a global High-Level policy dialogue on entrepreneurship

promotion during its World Investment Forum in Kenya, Nairobi in 2016 (WIF); with a view to enhance it fiirther at the upcoming WIF to take place next week in

Geneva.

• The OECD SME Ministerial Conference took place in Mexico in February 2018

and resulted in the adoption ofthe Ministerial Declaration on "Strengthening SMEs for productivity and inclusive growth".

• The Start-up Nations Ministerial Conference was organized by the Global

Entrepreneurship Network (GEN) in Istanbul in March 2018.

• ICSB

Second: Optimizing the regulatory framework

• Includes examples firom Mauritius and Rwanda ofimproved regulation for start

ups

• Improve support to women entrepreneurs including through ILO Gender and

Entrepreneurship Together and ITC She Trade programs

• And progress on UNCTAD e-regulations system that helps Governments to

improve the transparency and efficiency ofadministrative procedures and governance ofbusinesses was implemented across 30 countries, generating an 80% average reduction in the necessary administrative steps, forms and documents in beneficiary coimtries Third: Enhancing education and skills development Several programs are highlighted including those to promote women in entreprenemship such as UN-Women's virtual skills school to train women

entrepreneurs

Fourth: On improving access to finance

• Many Governments - including South Africa, Chile, Mexico, Argentina, and

Armenia - have engaged in initiatives to tap new forms offinancing, such as blended finance and crowdfimding, including in collaboration with the private sector, as well as through tax incentives Fifth: On facilitating technology innovation and exchange

• Tunisia, Estonia, and Peru, have continued their efforts in support oftechnology

exchange and transfer, innovation and capacity-building programmes Six: On Promoting awareness and networking

• The report highlights recent and ongoing initiatives highlighting the contribution
• fentrepreneurs to economic growth and the implementation ofthe SDGS
• International SMEs day. Forum held here at the UN by ICSB, Argentina

and Korea on 12 May, Third chapter: the emergence of initiatives aimed at promoting regional cooperation and enhancing the effectiveness ofentrepreneurial eco-systems at the city level. The report highlights that entrepreneurship is increasingly recognized as a crucial element in fostering regional economic cooperation. For example. South Africa's Department of Trade and Industry and UNCTAD organized a Ministerial Round-table for African States

• n the role of SMEs in Afiica's industrialization, during the Global Entrepreneurship

Congress held in 2017 in South Africa. In South America, UNCTAD, in collaboration with Empretec Argentina Foimdation, the Ministry of Production of Argentina and Prodem Argentina in November 2016 organized a Regional Workshop on Entrepreneurship Policies Implementation An important emerging target group for the development and implementation of entrepreneurship policies is that ofmigrants and refugees. UNCTAD, in collaboration with the International Organization for Migration (lOM) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), developed a policy guide to provide a high-level framework for policies and programmes to support migrant and refugee entrepreneurship. Foiirth Chapter: It illustrated initiatives and best practices on policy measures on social entrepreneurship promotion Increasingly, social enterprises are providing creative solutions that address the needs of disadvantaged groups providing affordable services in different areas. Corollary to the growing interest in social entrepreneurship is the emerging role ofthe social and solidarity economy (SSE), with a growing focus on cooperatives. In several coimtries, the social economy is becoming a priority for public authorities.

• Social enterprises are more visible and have gained recognition at the international level.

In North America and in most European coimtries, laws recognizing social enterprises have helped to institutionalize these entities and catalyse the social economy sector's growth. An increasing amount of resources is being chaimelled to social enterprises through de- risking and insurance mechanisms and social impact investments.

• Fifth Chapter: the importance of tools to monitor the progress on policy implementation

and of indicators to measure the impact of entrepreneurship policies on economic growth and the SDG implementation.

• Measuring impact of entrepreneurship policies on sustainable development remains a
• challenge. With the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its

monitoring indicators it has become even more important to develop and implement methodologies for data collection on the role ofentrepreneurship and MSMEs in the SDG implementation and their impact on sustainable and inclusive growth. Entrepreneurship is directly related to Goals 4 and 8 in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development where targets 4.4 and 8.3 include references to entrepreneurship.

• The outcomes of entrepreneurship policy promotion efforts are visible. For example, in

Cameroon, thanks to the implementation ofthe entrepreneurship promotion measures, the age and gender of new start-ups shifted towards youth and women that have received priority in the government's strategy, and the e-registration portal has extended to the 5 main Cameroonian cities. In the Gambia, the participatory process engaged with the different stakeholders and grassroots institutions, permitted the enforcement of policy changes that contributed to the country's democratization process.

• Initiatives are underway on data collection on SME and entrepreneurship promotion. For

example, the 2017-2018 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Report, which covers 68 percent ofthe world population in 54 economies, estimates that entrepreneurship levels are globally stable or on the rise. Databases related to specific dimensions of entrepreneurship can provide valuable statistical evidence.

• However, ftirther efforts are needed to collect quality, accessible, timely and reliable

disaggregated data aimed to monitor progress in the implementation of entrepreneurship policies and their direct and indirect contribution to the attainment ofthe SDGs. In conclusion, I would like to highlight key lessons from experiences in implementation entrepreneurship strategies and policies at the national level in several covmtries to ensure the impact ofentrepreneurship promotion on sustainable and inclusive devtaelopment:

Develop and strengthen coherent and comprehensive policy regulatoryframeworks, based on long-term strategies and inclusive approach, taking into account national priorities and circumstances, involving methodologies to benchmark the status of entrepreneurship ecosystem in order to identify its gaps as well as priorities for further action, and assess the progress in a consistent manner. Capacity building measures and sharing ofgood practices and lessons learned should be an integral part ofthe process. Develop action plans, assigning responsibilities

and ensuring coordination: Entrepreneurship development is a cross sectorial area involving a range ofpolicy actions

and support structures, which often fall under responsibility of different government departments and ministries. It is therefore important to set up a coordination mechanism

• r designate a lead institution at a coxmtry level to ensure collaboration of key regulators

and stakeholders responsible for specific components of entrepreneurship promotion policies and measures, such as access to finance and financial inclusion; science, technology and innovation; networking platforms; training and education. Training and education requires coordination

• f technical

and vocation skills development programmes, with soft skills development programmes, including those based on behavioral methodologies, such as Empretec programme ofUNCTAD, aimed to facilitate entrepreneurship thinking and mind set shift in the society, build confidence in potential and existing entrepreneurs, develop their ability to identify successful business

• pportunities as well as resilience to fear offailure, thus contributing to reducing negative

preconceptions of entrepreneurship, raising motivation to start or expand a business venture, improving the recognition of a high value of entrepreneurship for society. In addition, cross sectoral coordination is required to develop target policy measures to enhance a positive impact of entrepreneurship on women, youth, vulnerable people and people with disabilities; as well as to facilitate social and green entrepreneurship, and impact on poverty eradication. Stimulate partnerships at all levels and a multi-stakeholder dialogue: In developing entrepreneurship policy, it is important to engage a multi-stakeholder dialogue involving the public and private sectors, investment community, civil society, academia and relevant local, regional and national institutions; with a notion that at a regional level entrepreneurship can play a catalyst role in regional integration. Such efforts are key for stakeholder buy-in and spreading awareness about the social and economic benefits of entrepreneurship promotion in the coxmtry. Partnerships and cooperation are also critical at a global level to ensure synergies, enhanced impact and complementarity ofactions of many important players in the area of entrepreneurship promotion and development of micro, small and medium sized enterprises. Develop and implement regular review mechanisms to assess the contribution of entrepreneurship toward achievement of the SDGs: Regular review mechanisms

including based on quality, accessible, timely and reliable data and indicators, can strengthen the capacity of policymakers and government officials to keep abreast of trends and realities and enhance their efforts on developing and implementing targeted

entrepreneurship policies that are aligned with the SDGs.