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1. Special events and activities

2. Networks and partnerships

Special events and activities

Fairs and events:

Key Events:

• Lisbon Investment Summit: A European conference for startups, investors, and executives to network and create investment opportunities.
• Lisbon's Entrepreneurship Week: Annual event with conferences, workshops, and round tables involving investors, financial institutions, incubators, and universities.

Strategical plan for entrepeurneurship - StartUP Portugal

The Government's National Strategy for Entrepreneurship highlights young Portuguese people's initiative. StartUp Portugal promotes internationalisation, attracting startups and investors to Portugal and participating in major global tech events.

Web Summit Programme

The world's biggest tech event for entrepreneurship has been held in Lisbon since 2016. StartUp Portugal maximises the event's value with initiatives like Road 2 Web Summit and Born from Knowledge.

Entrepreneurs Academy

Created by the Young Entrepreneurs Association in 1997 to promote entrepreneurship and risk-taking. Key activities include:

• Entrepreneur Fair: Annual event for business opportunities and networking.
• Integrated Entrepreneurship Road Show: Promotes entrepreneurship in educational institutions.
• Competition of Ideas: Encourages young people to develop business ideas, awarding the young entrepreneur of the year certificate.

Promotion activities

Various dissemination activities promote youth entrepreneurship, particularly under the Youth Guarantee programme and StartUp Portugal. Collaborations with public entities and NGOs, local administration, and information campaigns are key components.

Social Entrepreneurship

Support initiatives for social entrepreneurship are mainly regional, with examples like the Youth+ programme in the Azores and IES – Social Business School in Cascais. Nationally, CASES supports social entrepreneurship projects.

Networks and partnerships

Incubators

The development of an entrepreneurial ecosystem in Portugal is based on accelerators and incubators. The government created a National Network of Incubators under the StartUp Portugal strategy, aiming to integrate incubators linked to universities, local authorities, and business associations. These incubators implement and monitor measures like the Startup Voucher and Momentum StartUp Portugal programme.

Business and Innovation Centre

Business and Innovation Centres (BIC) support innovative entrepreneurs and SMEs, promoting entrepreneurship and regional development. Recognised by the European Commission, they are coordinated by the European Business Centre Network (EBN).

Initiatives of entrepreneurship promotion that involve private, public organisations and the civil society

National Mentors Network

The National Mentors Network (RNM) is an initiative managed by IAPMEI, I.P., whose goal is to support entrepreneurs so they can develop their ideas and business projects, through mentoring. It involves those who share their experiences (mentors) and aspiring entrepreneurs.

This initiative is not aimed directly at young people, but they can benefit from it as well.

Mentors of the StartUP Voucher Network

Mentor network within the framework of the StartUp Voucher, as one of StartUp Portugal’s measures, that offers young people guidance and mentoring by experienced managers\entrepreneurs.

Promotion initiatives of entrepreneurship that involve organisations in the youth field.

There are also initiatives to promote entrepreneurship developed by organisations in the youth field, such as the Foundation of Youth, a private institution, of public interest.

Nests of Companies

Nests of Companies (NIDE) are physical incubation spaces that exist since 1992, providing technical, material and logistical support, which allow entrepreneurial activities.

The objective is to stimulate the creative and enterprising capacity of young people, between the ages of 18 and 35, to contribute to the reinforcement of self-employment, particularly of young

newly-graduates, and to stimulate the creation of micro companies.

They are managed by the Foundation of Youth and promoted by ministries and organisms of the Portuguese Government acting in the field of economy, education, science and youth, as well as by IAPMEI, I.P.