Women Entrepreneurs get support with WEgate platform

Today WEgate, the online platform for Women Entrepreneurs, is being launched. It’s the creation of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs and EASME, the Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized enterprises.

The WEgate platform is the European gateway for women’s entrepreneurship. This unique hub for online networking provides crucial information, inspiration and support to women entrepreneurs starting, financing, managing, marketing and expanding their businesses. On the platform women can find information on:

• mentoring.
• networking possibilities.
• training and peer-learning opportunities.
• good practices.
• success stories.
• related news.
• events.
• local organisations working on women’s entrepreneurship and more.

To mark the occasion, the European Commission is organising a launch event today. Women entrepreneurs and relevant stakeholders from all over Europe are being invited. They share WEgate’s mission to support established and aspiring women entrepreneurs in their efforts to start, grow and manage successful businesses in Europe.

Around 170 women entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship stakeholders will be present, including:

• MEP Alessia Mosca (S&D).
• Elisabetta Gardini (EPP).
• keynote speaker Lowri Evans, the European Commission’s Director General for internal Market, industry, entrepreneurship and SMEs.

Background

Entrepreneurship is a driver of innovation, jobs and growth, as well as social integration. Here, small and medium-sized enterprises play a key role, creating 85% of all new jobs in the EU. But only around 30% of start-up entrepreneurs are women, while women make up around 50% of the population.

The  Commission has been supporting women entrepreneurship with concrete actions. In the past, the Commission has worked on providing role models, mentoring support and business networks to women who want to start-up their business.

These activities fall under the Entrepreneurship Action Plan, providing concrete actions to support entrepreneurship in Europe. Within the Entrepreneurship Action Plan, the creation of this e-platform for women entrepreneurship is a specific action targeting women.