This report provides a data-driven situational analysis of the Entrepreneurship Support Organization (ESO) landscape across Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Panama. Based on original data from 75 organizations, it reveals an ecosystem anchored in experience but under strain due to chronic financial precarity and fragmented coordination. While ESOs achieve strong programmatic results, a critical gap remains in connecting early-stage ventures to growth capital.
This report provides a comprehensive situational analysis of Colombia's Entrepreneur Support Organization (ESO) ecosystem. Based on data from 36 organizations, it uncovers a seasoned and inclusive landscape anchored by a strong non-profit backbone. However, it also reveals a "scaling cliff" where support evaporates as ventures mature and a significant gap between programmatic success and access to growth capital.
This report presents a comprehensive overview of the Entrepreneur Support Organization (ESO) landscape in Mexico. Developed in collaboration with Bridge for Billions and ANDE, it explores key challenges, opportunities, and trends shaping the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the country.
The adoption of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) standards is relevant not only because investors are more inclined to consider them in their investment decisions but also due to their potential positive impact on sustainable development. While ESG implementation is still mostly voluntary, governments around the world are increasingly integrating these standards into their legal frameworks. Thus, understanding how the law supports ESG adoption becomes essential. However, the law alone is not sufficient to ensure that companies apply these standards. Investment is also needed to guarantee that the impact of ESG practices is long-lasting. In this paper we present our findings on how legal frameworks of 10 countries support ESG standards implementation, and what funding alternatives are available, particularly to small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
The OECD Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Diagnostics report introduces a novel framework and dataset to assess and compare entrepreneurial ecosystems across all 38 OECD countries. Rather than producing a single index to rank countries, the report adopts a multi dimensional approach based on three core components: inputs, outputs, and variation. Inputs cover ten essential elements—Institutions, Culture, Networks, Infrastructure, Markets, Finance, Knowledge, Talent, Leadership, and Intermediate Services—captured through composite indexes built from about 40 indicators drawn from OECD statistics and other sources. Outputs reflect entrepreneurial performance, with indicators such as startup rates and business survival. The variation dimension measures how entrepreneurship is distributed socially and regionally, with attention to inclusivity, particularly for women and distribution of startups across regions. Each dimension is tracked at three time points to monitor ecosystem evolution and progress. Designed as a policy support tool, the report provides robust, evidence based insights to identify systemic bottlenecks and guide national strategies. It aims at facilitating informed dialogue and targeted policy action to build dynamic and balanced national entrepreneurial ecosystems. Released as a pilot, this first edition lays the foundation for future iterations, with continued refinement of data and analytical depth to enhance its relevance and impact.
Business development service (BDS) programmes, such as accelerators and incubators, are increasingly looked to as promising ways to help entrepreneurs enhance their business skills, expand their networks, and access investment. In Fiji, there is a small but quickly growing entrepreneurial ecosystem supported by over a dozen BDS programmes. This report seeks to characterize the BDS landscape and form recommendations for its continued growth based on international research and established best practices from other ecosystems across the globe.
In this report, the authors assess the practices of Fiji's BDS providers against the SCALE principles, a set of recommendations published in 2021 by the Argidius Foundation which reflect global best practices for BDS provision. This study identified a total of 21 BDS programmes in the Fijian ecosystem administered by 14 service providers, including eight accelerators, five incubators, and eight additional programmes such as co-working spaces, grantmaking facilities, and technical assistance. Based on desk research and interviews with programme managers, the authors assessed Fiji’s accelerator and incubator landscape as moderately applying the SCALE principles.
The Pakistan Startup Ecosystem Report 2024 offers a deep dive into the journey of Pakistan’s entrepreneurial landscape, spotlighting the opportunities, challenges, and transformations that shape it. From a historic funding boom to today’s recalibrated focus on sustainability and innovation, the report provides key insights into the ecosystem’s evolution.
Discover how Pakistan’s startups are navigating economic headwinds while leveraging their immense potential, fueled by a young population, growing digital adoption, and promising infrastructure.
The McKinsey Global Institute aggregated a richly granular data set of micro-, small-, and medium-size enterprises (MSMEs) and large companies across 12 broad sectors, 68 level-two subsectors, and more than 200 level-three subsectors for 16 countries that account for more than half of global GDP.
In these countries, MSMEs on average have only half the productivity of large companies, and less than that in emerging economies. Raising MSMEs to top-quartile levels relative to large companies represents value equivalent to 5 percent of GDP in advanced economies and 10 percent in emerging economies.
Micro-, small, and medium-size enterprises (MSMEs) are crucial to economies, accounting for two-thirds of business employment in advanced economies and nearly four-fifths in emerging ones. They contribute half of all economic value added and play a key role in preserving competitiveness in globalized economies. However, MSMEs' productivity is only half that of large companies, with a more significant gap in emerging markets. Closing this gap could add 5% to GDP in advanced economies and 10% in emerging ones. Strategies to boost MSME productivity require tailored approaches to specific subsectors and countries. Collaboration between MSMEs and large companies is a win-win strategy that often leads to mutual productivity gains, as seen in sectors like automotive and software development. All stakeholders must develop targeted strategies, enhancing infrastructure, policies, and networks to support both MSMEs and large enterprises.
¿Cómo pueden los donantes ayudar y no obstaculizar a las organizaciones que ejecutan sus programas e iniciativas? Esta es una gran pregunta, y una que muchas organizaciones en ambos lados de la relación donante-beneficiario están explorando. Sin embargo, enfocarse en el crecimiento de las organizaciones que brindan el servicio desafía muchas prácticas arraigadas en el proceso de subvenciones. Este reporte, aquí resumido, responde a este tema mirando a una instancia específica de esta dinámica más amplia - cómo los donantes trabajan con las Organizaciones de Apoyo Empresarial (ESOs, por sus siglas en inglés). En los países de bajo y mediano ingreso, esta relación donante-ESO tiene significancia para el desarrollo de las PYMEs y el crecimiento económico.