Let women choose! - European partnership for the development of female entrepreneurship
This is Erasmus+ strategic partnership project. Coordinator is COOPERATIVA SOCIALE SERVICE COOP A R.L. (Italy).
The project partnership is composed of organisations with experience in supporting female entrepreneurs, from Italy, Portugal, Spain, Estonia, Greece and Lithuania.
In all EU countries, women's labor market participation is lower than that of men. Women in the world of work tend to work less hours, work in low-paid sectors and occupy lower-ranking positions than men. These differences are due, to some extent, to the deep rooting of traditional gender roles.
The specific objective of the project is the inclusion of women in the world of work, through the creation, development and consolidation of women's enterprises.
The target for which the project is aimed is represented by women aged between 40 and 55 who have had career breaks due, for example, to the need to take care of the family and have difficulty entering back into the world of work.
The project foresees:
- carry out a survey on a sample of experts (trainers, policy makers, representatives of trade associations and chambers of commerce, successful entrepreneurs, business consultants) with the aim of knowing the state of the art of the policies adopted and of the results achieved for the support of female entrepreneurship and to draw the ground and the ways in which to work to support their development;
- carry out a survey on a sample of women, in order to analyze the motivations that led them to do business, the difficulties faced, the repercussions in the family, the support offered by the social environment;
- implement 6 Expert Work Focus Groups, which will involve experts in training, policy makers, representatives of trade associations and chambers of commerce, successful entrepreneurs, business consultants;
- carry out an awareness campaign on: validity of female presence in sectors considered to be male domains; need to share family responsibilities;
- carry out a unified publication of the best practices collected: “Let the women choose! - Good practices to support female entrepreneurship ";
- implement n. 6 events dissemination of results and awareness of good practices collected.
The project is expected to produce the following results:
- knowledge of the state of the art of female entrepreneurship support policies;
- knowledge of women's needs (training, social, family);
- production of positive and lasting effects on the experts involved;
- establishment of relations and synergies that will allow to increase the awareness of the interested parties on the needs of female entrepreneurs;
- transfer of methodologies, tools and good practices, on the development and consolidation of women's enterprises, development of entrepreneurial skills, strengthening of support systems for the creation and development of women's enterprises, already tested in other contexts, which will accelerate the innovation process at the level of local;
- strengthening of entrepreneurial ecosystems supporting the development of women's enterprises; - renewal of the image of sectors currently identified as male domains;
- increased sharing of responsibilities between men and women.
In the long run, it is expected:
- greater cooperation between the experts and between them and the target group;
- improved sharing and exploitation of information among European regions on female entrepreneurship;
- increased dissemination of good practices for the inclusion of women in work focused on supporting entrepreneurship.
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This document has been produced with the assistance of the European Union. The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of the project partners and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.
