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AGENDA

#ETFinspire @etfeuropa

OVERVIEW

Women’s entrepreneurship is an economic issue!

The 2nd International Women’s Entrepreneurship Laboratory‑2017 will be organized under the

Platform II of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) and will build on the momentum created during the second round of the SBA Assessments (see report: “SME Policy Index. Implementation of the Small Business Act (SBA) for Europe”) in the Eastern Partner region 2016 to ensure follow up and implementation of recommendations in the policy area of women’s entrepreneurship.

The Women’s Entrepreneurship Laboratory will strengthen the established regional synergies and support the Eastern Partnership governments’ commitment to promote women’s entrepreneurship, both in the EaP region and in each of its countries. The Laboratory will engage active national and regional organisations to: strengthen their networking collaboration, share expertise, and coordinate country action plans to set up regional targets on women’s entrepreneurship promotion and achieve visible progress during the period between the last (2015) and the next (2018) SBA policy assessment in the region.

The 2nd International Women’s Entrepreneurship Laboratory‑2017 is implemented by the ETF in close

collaboration with the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine, Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine, European Business Association and EUROCHAMBRES, and with

support from the European Commission under the Eastern Partnership Platform‑2.

EVENT NAME 2nd International Women’s Entrepreneurship Laboratory in the Eastern Partner region

LOCATION Chamber Plaza, Kyiv, Ukraine

Bolshaya Zhitomirskaya str., 33, Kyiv, Ukraine

DATE(S) 21 - 23 March 2017

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Day 1: 21 March 2017 (Tuesday)

12:30-14:00 Registration session with photo shooting

14:00‑14:10 Introduction to the 1st Day of the event

Anthony Gribben, European Training Foundation (ETF)

14:10-15:45 CREATIVE Master class ‑ warming up exercise Objectives: engage participants in team collaboration and provide insights on how to TURN IDEAS INTO ACTION.

Facilitators - women-entrepreneurs and creators Olena Shcherban (Ukraine) and Ganna Tsukanova (Ukraine)

15:45-16:30 Official opening session of the “2nd International Women’s

Entrepreneurship Laboratory in the Eastern Partner region” ‑

WELCOME to participants:

Max Nefyodov, First Deputy Minister, Ministry of Economic Development and Trade

Juana Mera Cabello, First Counsellor, Head of Section "Economic Cooperation, Social and Regional Development", European Union Delegation to Ukraine

Mykhailo Nepran, First Vice‑ President, Ukrainian Chamber of Trade and Industry

Chair ‑ Anthony Gribben, European Training Foundation (ETF )

16:30-17:00 Coffee break

17.00-17.30 Women’s Entrepreneurship in the SBA agenda of the Eastern Partner region: setting the scene

Objectives of the Laboratory and expected outcomes of the three days will be presented. We will also revisit the main findings and recommendations of the last SBA assessment (SME Policy Index 2016) in the policy area of women’s entrepreneurship in the Eastern Partner region and make the link to the current state of play in the countries.

Presenter ‑ Olena Bekh, European Training Foundation (ETF)

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17.30-18.30 Brief updates from the Eastern Partner countries on progress in support to women’s entrepreneurship after 2015 SBA assessment

These updates will set a baseline for monitoring of country progress after the Laboratory and contribute to the upcoming SBA assessment 2018.

Presenters – representatives of government offices from Eastern Partner countries:

o Gayane Gevorgyan - Ministry of Economy of Armenia,

o Ulduz Babayeva - Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan,

o Yuliya Mamantava - Ministry of Economy of Belarus,

o Tsisnami Sabadze - Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia,

o Olesea Bordan and Eugenia Sili – Ministry of Economy of Moldova,

o Nataliia Kovalenko - Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine

18:30-20:30 Welcome Cocktail Reception offered by the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Greetings of participants by Anastasia Fetsi, Head of Operations, European Training Foundation (ETF)

Inspirational speaker ‑ Mariya Kryuchok (TEDxKyiv, Ukraine)

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Day 2: 22 March 2017 (Wednesday)

Morning session: Focus on challenges!

Objective: Overview of the key barriers for women’s entrepreneurship from EaP region and how to address them.

Chair ‑ Olena Bekh, ETF

08:30-09:45 Pitching on “catwalks” ‑ women entrepreneurs from EaP

countries tell their stories and lessons learned

Women-entrepreneurs from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine will share their entrepreneurial experience, present their business and tell their stories. This session is organized jointly with

European Business Association (EBA) and its “Unlimit Ukraine” Project.

Speakers: Mariam Poghosyan (Armenia), Mehin Tuayeva (Azerbaijan), Alena Tsikhanova (Belarus), Baia Abuladze (Georgia), Nino Elizbarashvili (Georgia), Ina Macovei (Moldova), Daria Buslenko (Ukraine), Anna Dovholap (Ukraine), Anna Petrova (Ukraine), Liliya Omelyanenko (Ukraine), Iryna Lytovchenko (Ukraine)

09:45-10:15 Exhibition presenting women entrepreneurs’ businesses

Participants will be moving between stands according to their interests. Presenters will come both from the Eastern Partner countries and their counterparts from European Business Association’s “Unlimit Ukraine” project.

Mariam Poghosyan (Armenia), Mehin Tuayeva (Azerbaijan), Alena Tsikhanova (Belarus), Baia Abuladze (Georgia), Nino Elizbarashvili (Georgia), Ina Macovei (Moldova), Daria Buslenko (Ukraine), Anna Dovholap (Ukraine), Olena Shcherban (Ukraine), Anna Tsukanova (Ukraine), Anna Petrova (Ukraine), Liliya Omelyanenko (Ukraine), Iryna Lytovchenko (Ukraine).

10:15‑10:45

Coffee break

10:45-11:00 Women’s entrepreneurship in numbers ‑ the “data mirror”

Session facilitated by ETF

11:00-11:30 Break‑out groups ‑ analysing and consolidating collected intelligence.

Objective: to brainstorm in mixed (cross‑country) teams to agree on 10 key problems and

challenges for women’s entrepreneurship relevant to the region, group them by policy areas and try to identify the key root factors and origins.

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11:30-13:00 Groups reporting back to the plenary and open panel discussion o What are the obstacles/barriers for women in business, general and

specific (specific to women vs. men, as well as ‑ globally, to the EaP region

vs. individual countries)?

o HUMAN CAPITAL challenges ‑ what are they and how common are they? o Cultural, economic, demographic and other obstacles, and challenges for

support agents and policy makers? o Opportunities, advantages and inspirational ways to address them?

Expert Panel: Lilit Asatryan (Armenia), Ryma Yepur (Belarus), Nino Elizbarashvili (Georgia), Zhala Amirbayova (Azerbaijan), Sofia Suleanschi (Moldova), Yulia Klymenko (Ukraine), Anna Petrova (Ukraine), Daiva Jonuskiene (Lithuania)

13:00-14:00 Lunch

Afternoon session: We know the problems ‑ what’s next? :))

Objective: Move from problems (within the main policy areas) to policy solutions. Review the policy actions prompted by, and monitored through, the SBA indicators’ framework.

Chair ‑ Anthony Gribben, ETF

14:00-14:45

Evidence-based policy making in women’s entrepreneurship: why do statistics remain an issue while so much data is being collected? Lack of data? Too much data? Wrong indicators? Or something else? And the role of monitoring and evaluation in the implementation and design of strategies.

14:45-15:30 Human capital strategies to boost women’s entrepreneurship ‑ EU, the Eastern

Partner region and the “key competence” link. Overview of the issues and recent initiatives for promotion of women’s entrepreneurship in the EU

Session facilitated by Olena Bekh, ETF

15:30-16:00 Discussing access to EU support programmes ‑ current and new opportunities

for women entrepreneurs in the context of Eastern partnership.

Speaker ‑ Boris Filipov, European Union Delegation to Ukraine

16:00-16:30 Coffee break

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16:30‑17:00 Access to capital: how to find your “angel” and implications for policy.

Speaker ‑ Philippe Gluntz, President, Business Angels Europe

17:00‑17:45 Institutional support and building up the network of women entrepreneurs: a case from Lithuania in partnership with Ukraine and Spain. Presenters - Daiva Jonuskiene, Siauliai Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Crafts, Lithuania, and Larysa Tsygan, Chernihiv Regional Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ukraine

17:45–18:00 Conclusions and close of Day 2 ‑ Anastasia Fetsi, ETF

FREE EVENING and informal networking

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Day 3: 23 March 2017 (Thursday)

Objective: Fine-tuning the strategies in the country context and consolidating regional priorities to achieve results at system level in mid-term perspective

Chair ‑ Anastasia Fetsi, ETF

09:00‑10:30 Special training session on “pitching”

(Preparation for presentations of country action plans)

Trainer ‑ Jochem Cuppen, Get in the Ring Global

10:30-12:00 Brainstorming, reviewing and planning country actions for developing women’s entrepreneurship ecosystem in six

COUNTRY ‑ break‑out groups

Each country group summarizes: problems, needs, policy solutions and implementation measures, as well as expected results and M&E approaches and prepares a plan of policy actions.

Coffee break will be served during the group work

12:00-13:00 Peer-review of women’s entrepreneurship support action plans between countries

Pairs of two countries will present to each other the proposed country action plans and: a) discuss the points which are a common priority for both peer countries, and b) provide feedback and improvement points to the peer country. This makes a “rehearsal” before the “pitching” of country actions in the plenary.

13.00-14:00 Lunch

14:00-15:00 “Pitching” of country action plans in women’s entrepreneurship support ecosystem to panel of experts.

Expert Panel: Boris Filipov, European Union Delegation to Ukraine, Svitlana Kolomiets, Better Regulations Delivery Office, Olena Bekh, ETF

Facilitator ‑ Jochem Cuppen

15:00-15:30 Coffee break

15:30-16:00 Consolidation and validation of regional priorities for women’s entrepreneurship ecosystem based on presented priorities of Eastern Partner countries ‑ plenary discussion

Facilitator ‑ Olena Bekh, ETF

16:00-17:00 Next steps in “digital collaboration” in the Eastern Partnership

Express training on the use of Eastern Partnership Women’s Entrepreneurship e‑platform.

What did we learn through interactive sessions during the three days, and what’s available for the future collaboration between the Eastern Partner countries in their support to women’s entrepreneurship?

Trainer ‑ Volodymyr Ivanov, Business Technology Development Center

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17:00-18:00 Summing up: recommendations for the next steps and agreements at the regional and country level on coordination mechanism and preparation for the 2018 round of SBA policy assessment

Official closure of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Laboratory‑2.

Facilitator ‑ Olena Bekh

FREE EVENING and informal networking