The issue of migration is held in high priority in EU policy making and is faced widely on a transnational basis. EMINENT recognises that entrepreneurship education must change to reflect the diversity of our society and needs to address the inhomogeneous needs and barriers of potential entrepreneurs. Only this way the entrepreneurial potentials of all groups of our civic society can be fostered.
Entrepreneurship has long been considered one of the most impactful and sustainable lifestyle routes for migrants as it is factual that immigrants are more likely to engage in entrepreneurial activity than nationals (GEM UK Report). However, this statistic relates primarily to men; the proportion of female immigrants engaging in enterprise is significantly lower and immigrant women have lower rates of employment, many working in jobs inferior to their educational attainment. (Hinds, Women on the Edge).
The EU Commission identified the potential of female visionaries as an ‘under-exploited source of economic growth’ and has launched the Europe 2020 strategy to tackle this. Despite countries such as the UK, Ireland, Germany and the Netherlands having introduced measures to improve the institutional framework for female enterprise, a lot more needs to be done especially to overcome the specific individual barriers for female migrants.
EMINENT educational resources, managers, teachers and trainers in VET institutions are gearing up to help overcome existing bias, update their own skills and modify service provision in their institutions to be more inclusive and better support female migrant entrepreneurs as well as determining how to ensure they are deliver a programme in an effective but culturally-sensitive way.
Overall goal of EMINENT, is to facilitate the number of female migrant entrepreneurs by transforming their access to and the quality of the training they receive from entrepreneurship VET institutions. To do this we will work with a range of enterprise education providers from local authorities to community organizations, to improve the quality of learning opportunities that are available to them. Specifically, we will produce;
Develop a Compendium of Good Practice presenting good practice on engaging with women from minority groups and culturally appropriate and effective pedagogical techniques
Create, publish and trial a Curriculum and Classroom Course that provides the knowledge and skills needed for female entrepreneurs to gain the confidence, knowledge and skills needed to establish and successfully run their own business
Create an interactive knowledge platform acting as a multi-dimensional learning hub and exchange platform for female migrant entrepreneurs, VET and stakeholders
Design and implement innovative learning placements for 20 female migrants with start-up potential in successful (preferably female led) businesses.
Through focused use of these tools this project aims to enable service providers to improve collaborative planning and coordination of entrepreneurship VET institution activities, increase the ability of educators to deliver effective, personalised and culturally sensitive education and develop an innovative learning framework that provides female migrants with opportunities for knowledge and skills development in the areas most needed for a successful introduction into entrepreneurship.