Global Entrepreneurship Week Highlights

The EU4Innovation Action has been a proud partner of Global Entrepreneurship Week 2023 in Albania. Let’s look back and celebrate some of the events where our project was a key organizer/ supporter.

It all started on Monday, November 13th when representatives from the Albanian government, the EU delegation, German Development Cooperation, the Swedish Embassy, and GIZ got together to celebrate Albania's achievements in innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship. During the opening event, it was announced that the main goal of this week was to increase interaction between all innovation ecosystem actors and to transform the culture of doing business with access to global innovations.

?On November 15th, Eu4Innovation together with ProSEED 2.0 Albania, co-organized an event titled “The Role of Universities and VET (Vocational Education Training) in the Development of Entrepreneurial Talents” at the premises of Piramida. The event consisted of a combination of a presentation and a panel discussion. Present were representatives from the government, universities, civil society organizations, VET public providers, and the private sector. A special focus was on INNOVET, an initiative by GIZ Albania in partnership with the Ministry of Finance and Economy and the National Agency of Employment and Skills that aims to promote entrepreneurship and innovative thinking as skill sets for future talents in public VET providers.

?EU4Innovation was present in Shkodra as well, for the “Techstars Startup Weekend Shkodra" Hackathon, organized in partnership with KOESTINGER TACE & partners, on November 17th – 19th. This event was a big success, with approximately 130 youngsters participating. During 54 intensive hours, participants gained essential knowledge and skills for thinking, working and building like a startup. 10 business ideas were presented by the attendees the first day, which then led to the formation of 10 teams that worked together for the upcoming two days. The startup teams took part in workshops and mentoring sessions and finally pitched their ideas to a panel of judges and the audience. The hackathon came to an end with the awarding of the three best ideas.

?GEW 2023 came to an end where it all started, at the Pyramid of Tirana, with a celebratory closing event on November 20th. Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and Business Climate, Ms. Delina Ibrahimaj, Head of Albanian Development Fund, Mr. Dritan Agolli, Head of German Development Cooperation in Albania, Dr. Iven Schad, and Swedish Ambassador to Albania, Mr. Niklas Str?m highlighted the importance and impact of GEW events in the innovation ecosystem. Following, a panel discussion with the participation of key players and supporters of the ecosystem concluded this intensive week with a retrospective and with a call for action to further develop Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Albania.

EU4Innovation is a proud partner of GEW 2023, organized by the Ministry for Entrepreneurship and Business Climate, together with other key partners and supporters of the Albanian innovation ecosystem. We are thankful to have contributed in this dynamic and diverse week full of events, that planted the seeds for inspiration, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

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