Young people, women and older people face financial, skills and networking challenges that make it harder for them to start businesses than for other groups in society. In November 2021, the European Commission and OECD released the 2021 edition of “Missing Entrepreneurs in 2021”, which pointed out: If everyone had the same opportunities and conditions to participate in entrepreneurship as men aged 30-49, an additional 9 million people could start and manage new businesses in the European Union (EU) and 35 million in OECD countries, representing a 50% increase in the number of people engaged in entrepreneurship in the EU and a 40% increase in OECD countries. In order to achieve this growth, it is necessary to solve the entrepreneurial obstacles faced by specific social groups. About threequarters of these “missing” entrepreneurs are women, half are over 50 years old and one-in-eight are under 30 years old.

Young people start fewer businesses than those aged 50 and over. Nearly a quarter of the 18 million people who started a new business in the EU in 2020 are over 50-a much higher proportion than those aged 18 to 30. Therefore, the government needs to do more to support young people to realize their entrepreneurial wishes. The report shows that nearly 45% of college students plan to start a business within five years after graduation, but only 5% of people aged 18 to 30 finally do so. This decline can be explained by many factors, including the skill gap. People under the age of 30 are only 85% more likely to have confidence in their entrepreneurial skills and knowledge than those over the age of 50. Separately, women are less active in starting businesses than men, with fewer than 5% of EU women involved in starting or managing early-stage businesses between 2016-2020, compared with 8% of men. A similar gap exists in OECD countries, where 9% of women start and manage new businesses, compared with 13% of men. These gender gaps are caused by a number of factors, including barriers to access to finance, skills gaps and policies that affect motivation, among others. In OECD and EU countries, for example, women are about 75% more likely than men to have the skills needed to start a business. This gender gap also represents a missed opportunity for economic growth. The report provides suggestions for the government to introduce corresponding policies, which should give priority to the following aspects: 

1. Addressing the financing gap, such as increasing microcredit for those who cannot obtain traditional loans and investments; 

2. Providing entrepreneurship training and counseling to meet the needs of different groups of people to narrow the skills gap. 

3. Addressing systemic biases in entrepreneurship support using tailored programs that help address the greater barriers to entrepreneurship faced by groups such as women, immigrants, youth, seniors, and the unemployed.