Brussels, 9 January – Continuing on from the Mission Growth industrial policy, the European Commission has released its Entrepreneurship 2020 Action Plan, designed to strengthen Europe’s entrepreneurial potential. New companies (especially SMEs) create the most new jobs in Europe, but with around 50% of companies failing in their first five years, policy-makers are seeking to create an environment in which entrepreneurs can flourish and grow.
Brussels, 9 January – Continuing on from the Mission Growth industrial policy, the European Commission has released its Entrepreneurship 2020 Action Plan, designed to strengthen Europe’s entrepreneurial potential. New companies (especially SMEs) create the most new jobs in Europe, but with around 50% of companies failing in their first five years, policy-makers are seeking to create an environment in which entrepreneurs can flourish and grow.
The Action Plan outlines the importance of education and training to raise new generations of entrepreneurs, with specific measures to target young people, women, seniors, migrants and the unemployed. The plan also introduced measures to facilitate start-ups and new business, make transfers of business ownership more successful and improve access to finance. Further, as ‘second starters’ can often prove successful, the plan seeks to introduce new insolvency rules to help entrepreneurs get back on their feet after bankruptcy.
Policy intervention follows a Eurobarometer poll which found that the desire to be self-employed had fallen from 45% to 37% amongst European citizens, as a result of insecurity following the financial and sovereign debt crises. The Commission will pursue its aims by working with Member States, business organisations and relevant stakeholders to produce a roadmap with specific targets and dates.
Click to read the Entrepreneurship 2020 Action Plan.