Brazil is more than just the popular future host of the 2014 World Cup
and 2016 Olympics. It is a very promising economy and the country of
origin of many global
challenger companies, such as Embraer, Marcopolo, and Natura.
Economic analysts group the country with the most promising emerging
markets, Russia, India and China, which together form the “BRIC
countries.” Is entrepreneurship responsible for part of Brazil’s
economic development? A look at some of the trends in entrepreneurship
in Brazil suggests so, and the country’s efforts to boost its culture of
innovation and entrepreneurship promise to sustain its growth in the
coming years.
According to data gathered by Endeavor Brazil, an
organization working to promote high-growth entrepreneurship in the
country that I visited with in Rio recently for their Selection Panel,
young businesses play a crucial role in Brazil’s economic and social
future. Currently, small and medium size-enterprises (SMEs) are
responsible for 96% of the jobs in Brazil and comprise 98% of all
companies in the country. According to the technical director of the
Brazilian Micro-Enterprise and Small Business Support Service (SEBRAE),
Luiz Carlos Barboza, the increase of new companies
in Brazil is directly related to Brazilians’ growing entrepreneurial
spirit. Despite these conditions, an entrepreneurial mindset is
flourishing among Brazilians. Judging by the wide interest among Brazils
in activities during Global Entrepreneurship Week, Barboza is not
exaggerating. The number of participants in Brazil’s Global
Entrepreneurship Week increased from 1.5 million people in 2008 to 5.3
million in 2009. An even more optimistic statistic is that a lot of
Brazil’s entrepreneurial dynamism is geared toward high-growth ventures,
as opposed to companies that form and then remain small. According to
the OECD, Brazil reported a large number of high-growth
enterprises in 2006.
To read the full, original article click on this link: Policy Dialogue on Entrepreneurship | Brazil’s Entrepreneurship Boom
Author: Jonathan Ortmans is president of the Public Forum Institute, a non-partisan organization dedicated to fostering dialogue on important policy issues. In this capacity, he leads the Policy Dialogue on Entrepreneurship, focused on public policies to promote entrepreneurship in the U.S. and around the world. In addition, he serves as a senior fellow at the Kauffman Foundation.
