Vision 2035: An Entrepreneurial Future for Latin America + the Caribbean

Hundreds of policymakers, investors, founders and entrepreneur support organizations met at GEC+Puerto Rico in San Juan to explore an ambitious roadmap for a more vibrant and thriving economy by 2035. For GEN, this is a continuation of more than 15 years of work in the region to make it easier for anyone, anywhere to start and scale new companies. The following is just a sampling of what we accomplished together onsite. 

GEN Releases Roadmap to Unlock Entrepreneurial Potential + Bolster Economic Growth

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After more than 50 sessions and in collaboration with delegates across the region, we launched a roadmap for entrepreneurial success with seven targets and 35 recommendations in support of policies and programs that leverage entrepreneurship to boost economic growth and job creation.

“Gathering the region’s builders and backers in San Juan has provided an opportunity to put to paper a roadmap of policies and programs to ensure Latin America and the Caribbean has a clear but ambitious 10-year vision for leveraging talent for entrepreneurial growth and development." - Jonathan Ortmans, founder and president of the Global Entrepreneurship Network.

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Policy Leaders Discuss Entrepreneurial Growth at Startup Nations Ministerial 

Ministers and other policy leaders from eight countries participated in the Startup Nations Ministerial hosted by the U.S. Small Business Administration in partnership with GEN. Attendees engaged in dialogue around their experience and policy approach to encouraging entrepreneurial growth – including on topics of digital government and the digital economy, access to finance, trade and resource attraction, and inclusion and outreach to underserved markets.

“I’m honored to join business leaders from the global entrepreneurial ecosystem at GEC+Puerto Rico to engage in dialogue about how we can foster more startups, innovation, and collaboration between the United States and nations across the Western Hemisphere, where we currently trade about $2.4 trillion annually,” said U.S Small Business Administrator Guzman. “With a historic small business boom in the United States and the highest startup rates by Latino founders in over a decade, now is the time to leverage our great diversity to expand pathways to trade and advance our economies across the Western Hemisphere.”

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Four USA Startups Advance to Entrepreneurship World Cup Global Finals 

GEN met 10 up-and-coming companies that pitched for a chance to advance to the Entrepreneurship World Cup Global Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia later this year. Four of them will advance to the Entrepreneurship World Cup (EWC) Global Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia later this year. 

“I am honored to be chosen out of such a great group of founders,” said Dr. Courtney Young, CEO and co-founder of MyoGene Bio, one of the four national winners. “I am very excited to be going to Riyadh to share MyoGene’s story of our aim to develop life-saving genetic therapies for muscle diseases. Huge thanks to the Global Entrepreneurship Network and the judges for this opportunity!” 
 

Meet the Companies

GEN Launches No Bad Ideas Card Game

GEN launched a fun new card game – No Bad Ideas – to help anyone turn inspiration into great ideas without fear of making mistakes. It is one tool alongside an array of pre-start programs, like GEN Idea Builders, which helps cohorts of nascent entrepreneurs test prototypes, and Global Entrepreneurship Week which invites hundreds of thousands of ordinary citizens each year to consider the path of entrepreneurship.

Get the Game

GEN Invest LatAm Council Announced

GEN launched the GEN Invest LatAm Council with participation from 18 investors and investor networks from across the region. The goal of this council is to have a direct impact on the early-stage investment ecosystem of the region and help generate success cases for both investors and entrepreneurs.

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Watch the Sessions

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