6.12.2022
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
C 465/59 Tuesday 3 May 2022
O. whereas six Member States have created 11 private funds to fill the gap in funding for women entrepreneurs, and these funds use gender considerations that support diversity in their investment criteria; whereas some of these funds have received national or EU support, which shows the important role of public policies in promoting entrepreneurship (28);
P. whereas there are challenges in effectively measuring entrepreneurship in the EU;
Q. whereas less than 8 % of top companies’ CEOs are women;
R. whereas 59 % of scientists and engineers in the EU in 2018 were men and only 41 % were women, representing a gap of 18 % (29); whereas social norms, stereotypes, cultural discouragement and gendered expectations about career choices, which are often reinforced through educational content and curricula, are two of the main drivers of gender segregation in higher education and in the labour market;
S. whereas it is crucial for Europe to have an equal number of women and men as entrepreneurs to ensure diversification of content and products; whereas between 2014 and 2018 female-led start-ups were as likely to offer new products and services as those led by men in the EU (30), showing that women and men must been seen as performing equally well in innovation; whereas encouraging more women to become entrepreneurs can improve the quality and diversity of innovations, products and services;
T. whereas the European Network of Female Entrepreneurship Ambassadors has so far organised more than 650 national meetings and reached over 61 000 would-be women entrepreneurs; whereas its ambassadors have supported the creation of more than 250 new women-led enterprises as well as several more networking and business support clubs for women (31);
U. whereas in 2020, there were more people who knew someone who had stopped a business than knew someone who had started one (32), which recalls the importance of nurturing fertile ground for every kind of entrepreneurship, and of staying connected to other economies, to remain alert to new opportunities, and to safeguard the jobs of the future;
V. Whereas the gender pay gap in the EU stands at 14,1 % and has only changed minimally over the last decade; whereas 24 % of the gender pay gap is related to the overrepresentation of women in relatively low-paying sectors, such as care, health and education;
W. whereas entrepreneurship requires knowledge and skills; whereas increasing women’s and girls’ educational attainment contributes to their economic empowerment and more inclusive economic growth; whereas lifelong education, upskilling and reskilling, especially to keep pace with rapid technological and digital transformations increases their professional opportunities and is important for women and girls’ health, well-being and quality of life;
X. whereas entrepreneurship should be accessible for all women including women with disabilities, older women and those with a minoritised racial or ethnic background; whereas women with disabilities can find it more difficult to start their own businesses; whereas entrepreneurship among older women is not being promoted although they should be seen as a valuable and unused potential for economic growth; whereas the promotion of entrepreneurship among migrant women can offer great opportunities for their integration in the labour market and foster their economic independence and empowerment;
(28) (29) (30) (31) (32)
Eurofound, Female entrepreneurship: Public and private funding, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 2019.
Eurostat, ‘Women in science and technology’, Products Eurostat News, 2 October 2020.
OECD, The Missing Entrepreneurs — Policies for Inclusive Entrepreneurship, OECD Publishing, Paris, 2019.
https://ec.europa.eu/growth/smes/supporting-entrepreneurship/women-entrepreneurs/support-tools-and-networks-women_en Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, 2021/2022 Global Report — Opportunity Amid Disruption, GEM, London, 2022, https://www.gemconsortium.org/reports/latest-global-report.