Brussels, 20/05/2014 (Agence Europe) - The spirit of enterprise among young people must be developed further in European Union countries. There is a certain coolness in Europe with regard to company start-ups and creativity among young people must be encouraged and developed to reverse this situation. There must be “business nurseries” to help young people start up their own businesses. This was the message sent out by ministers responsible for youth affairs in the debate at the Council in Brussels on 20 May on “promoting the spirit of enterprise among young people”. Androulla Vassiliou, Commissioner for Youth, explained that “entrepreneurship has to be cultivated very early at all levels of education. Young people must understand that you need more than just a job to have a nice life but also the opportunity and determination to create one's own business”. The Greek minister for education and religion, Athanasios Kyriazis, said that “this should not be an adventure or panacea. We need to put a healthy ecosystem in place for young entrepreneurs in Europe”.
Entrepreneurship is an important sector for economic growth and job creation. The spirit of enterprise increases young peoples' employability. Encouraging young people to create their own businesses requires learning how to be entrepreneurial, particularly in school curricula, emphasised ministers during the debate. This, however, is not the only ingredient. They also need to be provided with incentives to become entrepreneurs, particularly through financial incentives or providing premises that they can use for setting up their businesses. Fear of failure has to be overcome and young people need to be encouraged to tackle their fears by devising solid action plans at a European level for helping them, with the assistance of European structural funds, particularly the European Social Fund and the Erasmus+ programme. The EU also has to encourage the exchange of best practice among member states, as well as networking among young people and small businesses to exchange ideas.
Following the public debate, the Youth Council adopted conclusions for promoting the spirit of enterprise among young people, in an effort to encourage social inclusion, a cross-cutting priority under the Greek Presidency, while youth unemployment rates remain high in the EU, particularly in Greece. The conclusions highlight the need to promote social entrepreneurship, creativity, innovation and green jobs. They call on the member states to acknowledge the importance of education and entrepreneurship from a very young age and underline the role played by non-formal and informal learning in enduring the independence and personal fulfilment of young people and in facilitating their successful integration into the labour market. Entrepreneurial skills also include transversal skills and behaviour, as well as transversal knowledge. Social entrepreneurship, which mainly seeks to contribute to the well-being of society as a whole, is particularly likely to promote interest among young people and provide them with an opportunity to bring innovative solutions to current economic, social and environmental problems, state the conclusions. The EU's EUROPE 2020 strategy and its flagship initiatives (New Skills for New Jobs, A Digital Agenda for Europe, A Union of Innovation and Youth on the Move) promote entrepreneurship and encourage attitudes and skills that are likely to stimulate competitiveness and smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. (IL)