Boosting Female Social Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Creation for inclusion groups Erasmus Project

Project Title

Boosting Female Social Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Creation for inclusion groups

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for adult education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Inclusion – equity; Gender equality / equal opportunities; Access for disadvantaged

Project Summary

There is global interest in the potential for social entrepreneurship in general and social enterprise in particular, to realize ‘win-win’ outcomes. A widespread assumption is that social enterprises’ combination of entrepreneurial behavior and market economy strategies will lead to many desirable outcomes. For instance, it will provide people experiencing social needs opportunities to engage in active citizenship bottom-up, developing their agency through participation in governance of the enterprise, while simultaneously generating revenue by selling goods and services in the market economy, thereby creating sustainable jobs. Such outcomes can improve quality of life for those involved, contribute to more inclusive societies, reduce public expenditure on social needs, and generate tax revenues.
How the potential benefits of social entrepreneurship can be realized by means of activities organized in social enterprises, is an issue addressed in several initiatives by the European Commission following its Social Business Initiative (European Commission, 2011). Further initiatives have highlighted how the potential benefits with social enterprise can be developed through collaboration and comparisons between countries. Although social enterprises have been found to evolve in response to specific social needs in specific contexts, there are many similarities stimulating mutual learning opportunities. The international academic field of social enterprise has contributed to more conceptual clarity (Defourny, Hulgård & Pestoff, 2014), making comparisons between countries more feasible.
The aim of the project PAL WOMEN is to empower disadvantaged women integration & improve their basic competencies in terms of social entrepreneurship and marketing (improved levels of skills for employability and new business creation). The project shares the opportunity to raise concerns, exchange experiences and mobilize jointly over common purposes. Additionally it is aiming at enhancing access to training and qualifications for low-skilled, through continuing adult education, promoting work-place learning and mentoring, providing for efficient and integrated guidance services and flexible and permeable learning pathways. It aims to bring women closer to education, entrepreneurship and employment and support the development of professional skills enhancement exploring business opportunities to 2 related topics. Its main aims are:
• Development of strong partnership in the field of target group social and economic empowerment (organization of 2 international round tables and strategy proposal)
• Promotion of gender equity in cooperation with civil-society organizations and public authorities
• Transfer of knowledge and learning about the main female entrepreneurship problems and the ways of their solving and connected them with the two main topics developed, powerful toll for women’s empowerment through initial research and exchange experience among stakeholders
• Creation of innovative learning curricula supporting female entrepreneurship as a result of training and mentoring

The specific project objectives are the following:
• Involvement of women from social inclusion groups in training activities and mentoring procedures aiming at their social inclusion
• Inspiration and support for “would-be” women entrepreneurs and women returning to work
• Teaching women in business skills and promoting opportunities for career development
• Promote entrepreneurship so that more people and in particular younger ones, seriously consider entrepreneurship as career option
• Encouraging female entrepreneurs to create their own businesses
• Advocating innovation in management/ production and best practices towards introducing new business models

The overall objective of the project is to strengthen, support and develop the economic, social and political empowerment providing new economic and social opportunities in the field of social entrepreneurship, digital economy and eco-innovation. The designed activities involve “PAL_TRAIN” Academies, “PAL_EDU” Master Classes, Mentoring Peers and training of trainers’ activities.

Our project will be carried out in 7 countries: Spain, Greece, Bulgaria, Belgium, Serbia, Italy and Czech Republic and with initial impact on more than 1500 organizations and experts. Cross-border cooperation will bring together people and ideas that can enhance the objectives of the project and can involve diversification as added value.

Project Website

https://palwomen.eu/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 234166 Eur

Project Coordinator

Dum narodnostnich mensin o.p.s. & Country: CZ

Project Partners

• UDRUZENJE GRADANA EDUKATIVNI CENTARROMA
• RomPraha
• GREEK ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS – SEGE
• OECON GROUP BULGARIA
• Consorzio Innopolis
• FLORIDA CENTRE DE FORMACIÓ, COOP. V
• UC LIMBURG