New decade, new opportunity for advancement in inclusive entrepreneurship

A recent report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) focuses on increasing participation in entrepreneurship from underrepresented and disadvantaged groups such as women, immigrants, youth, seniors, the unemployed, and people with disabilities. The Missing Entrepreneurs 2019 report notes that addressing market and institutional failures that prevent equal opportunities in entrepreneurship “is an important requirement for achieving a new type of growth that is more inclusive, sustainable and people-centered.” The report recommends policies to increase opportunities for these groups, such as including entrepreneurship models in science-based programs in higher education to increase awareness about the potential of entrepreneurship for students, especially young women.

Underrepresented and disadvantaged groups face barriers in the entrepreneurship sector including access to finance, lack of business networks, entrepreneurial culture and the regulatory environment. Key recommendations from the report, the fifth edition in the series of Missing Entrepreneurs reports, include collecting more gender and age disaggregated data on the digital economy and digital self-employment, building a more inclusive culture around digital start-ups, supporting the development of digital and entrepreneurial skills, and improving access to finance for digital entrepreneurship for these underrepresented groups.