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12/18/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 12/18/2024 13:04

The state of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Latin America: Building inclusion and dynamism

The state of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Latin America: Building inclusion and dynamism

Latin America is at a crucial moment for the development of its entrepreneurial ecosystems. The region, known for being a leader in female entrepreneurship, faces unique challenges and opportunities in the area of generating new businesses.

The 2024 GEIAL Reportis a comprehensive analysis of 25 ecosystems in cities across eight countries, offering insight into both the current situation and recent trends in change. This document highlights the importance of three fundamental pillars needed to boost the entrepreneurial ecosystem: the conditions for the generation of women-led ventures, science and technology-based companies (STBCs), and corporate open innovation initiatives with startups.

In a global context that demands inclusive and innovative solutions, Latin America has the opportunity to position itself as a leader in sustainable and integrative entrepreneurship models. However, the report's findings highlight that significant inequalities persist, which limit the potential of many people, especially women, within the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Women-led entrepreneurship: Progress and Challenges

The report points out that no Latin American ecosystem has achieved fully favorable conditions for women-led entrepreneurship.The cities with the best results, such as Manizales and Medellín, barely exceed 50 points on a scale of 100. This score reveals that while progress has been made in areas such as access to higher education, structural barriers remain a major obstacle.

The main difficulties faced by women include limited access to finance and relevant contact networks. In addition, family responsibilities fall disproportionately on them, limiting the time they can devote to their businesses. In Quito, for example, more than 60% of female entrepreneurs reported that these burdens hinder their business development, while in Montevideo, female entrepreneurs have 20% less access to financing rounds than their male counterparts.

Despite these challenges, the ecosystem has begun to incorporate a gender perspective into its organizations, public policies, and support programs. This progress is crucial to fostering more inclusive and equitable environments, but there is still a need to expand these initiatives and measure their impact more systematically.

Science and technology-based companies: An engine to be developed

STBCs represent a great opportunity to position Latin America on the global stage of innovation. However, the report shows that even the best-positioned ecosystems, such as Barranquilla and Santiago, do not exceed 50 points in terms of favorable conditions for their development. Deficiencies in incentives for researchers, poorly adapted regulatory frameworks, and lack of specialized financing are the main obstacles.

For women in this field, the barriers are even greater. Their low representation in STEM careers and the lack of equal opportunities within scientific institutions limit their participation in this type of endeavor.

Open innovation: Collaboration with potential

An encouraging finding from the report is the rise of open innovation initiatives in cities such as São Paulo, Manizales, and Montevideo. These initiatives seek to connect startups with large corporations to develop more agile and innovative solutions. However, the impact of these collaborations is still limited.

Montevideo stands out as one of the ecosystems with the greatest potential in this field, thanks to its collaborative spirit and trust among local actors. Despite this, women remain a minority in these initiatives, which underlines the need for specific programs to promote their participation.

The path toward more inclusive and dynamic entrepreneurial ecosystems requires a joint effort by governments, companies, educational institutions, and civil society. The adoption of public policies with a gender perspective, the promotion of specific programs for women entrepreneurs, and the strengthening of alliances between academia and industry will be key to transforming challenges into opportunities.

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