News item | 05-06-2019 | 19:49
The 2019 Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES 2019), co-hosted by the governments of the United States and the Netherlands, showcased the depth and breadth of innovations that are improving lives around the world, and the critical role of governments in enabling environments for innovation to thrive.
With The Future Now as the central theme, GES 2019 empowered entrepreneurs to pursue solutions to global challenges in the following sectors: Agri/Food, Connectivity, Energy, Health, and Water. To reach these goals, investors from across the capital continuum, ranging from venture capital firms to family offices, intersected with scientists and entrepreneurs to harness industries of the future such as 5G, advanced manufacturing, and artificial intelligence. Investors, entrepreneurs, and policymakers all have important roles in harnessing these technologies to bring solutions to market, and GES 2019 brought these groups together to create the next waves of innovation. GES 2019 illustrated how investment in new technologies and businesses is spurring innovation now and building the foundation for future advancements.
Women & Entrepeneurship
Women empowerment was a central theme in the GES program, resulting in over 35% female entrepreneurs, 3 theme sessions and a Women Power Lunch.
“Investing in women is just smart business.”
Ivanka Trump, Advisor to the President of the United States
Several initiatives were presented to bridge the gender gap in the future workforce, including the partnership between USAID, OPIC, and Women’s World Banking Asset Management (WAM) seeking to mobilize $100 million to economically and digitally empower women in developing markets. USAID announced the second WomenConnect Challenge ($1.5 million), an initiative launched by Ivanka Trump, aiming to empower women and girls to access and use digital technology. In the Netherlands, the FEM NL Initiative was presented by theNextWomen, FMO, ING, Rabobank, and ABN Amro, aiming to close the funding gap for female founders in the Netherlands.
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