How To

Affect policies & regulations

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An incubator often acts as a credible, neutral and trustworthy connection between the world of business and the world of government.  This is especially true when an incubator has strong government backing and participation in governance.  This role enables an incubator to influence government policies to improve the environment for business. 

An incubator is in direct contact with many growing businesses each day, and is in a good position to understand not just specific issues but also the systemic regulatory constraints on small business growth.  Communicating these to government can help bring change.  An incubator can also influence ICT policies and programs by showcasing how effective these technologies can be in underpinning business growth.

This section outlines strategies that incubators can follow to take their experiences in supporting business growth and use them to influence policies and regulations.

Highlights

South-South Cooperation for Technology Transfer and Development of SMEs - Paper on Role of Business Incubation Systems The International Conference on "South-South Cooperation for Technology Transfer and Development for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)", jointly organised by the National Science Foundation and the National Science and Technology Commission of Sri Lanka and the Centre for Science and Technology of the Non-Aligned and Other Developing Countries (NAM S&T Centre) was held from 18-22 August 2008.
GARNET Workshop in Sofia, Call for Papers by February 4 This international workshop is part of the activities of GARNET, a EU Research Network of Excellence under the Sixth Framework Programme. The workshop is carried out within the framework of a Jointly Executed Research Project "Technology, Innovation and Governance".
An ICT Center and Business Incubator for Mozambique: Stakeholder meeting held in Maputo infoDev and the IFC commissioned a feasibility study to assess the market opportunity for an ICT center and business incubator in Maputo. On Nov. 27th, a stakeholder meeting chaired by H.E. Dr. Massingue, Minister of Science and Technology of Mozambique, was organized to present the results of this work and to facilitate the process of making this feasibility study a reality.
"Science and Innovations for Society" Competition in Ukraine Supported by “Kharkov Technology”, the Academy of Science of Ukraine and the British Council in Ukraine, the 4th Annual International Competition “Science and Innovations for Society” was launched. The goal of this competition is popularization of national scientific achievements, attraction of public attention to the problems of national science, raising the prestige of science in society, assistance to wider introduction of scientific developments and innovations into practice, search of talented science popularizers in every profession, involvement of youth into scientific and innovation activities.
Yerevan: ATHGO International Symposia on Sustainable Growth in ICT and Hi-tech through Education Over 300 college students and young professionals from Armenia, the Region, and around the world met at the American University of Armenia in Yerevan, Armenia between November 19-23, 2007 to discuss the challenges and opportunities associated with ensuring sustainable growth in Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and hi-tech through the higher education curricula in developing and developed nations. The Forum commenced with the launch of ATHGO's ICTs specialized Advanced Study Center on November 19, 2007 under the auspices of the High office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia.
MENA Network Conference in Bahrain to Discuss Regional Collaboration The 5th MENAinc Workshop, “Shaping the Future through Innovation and Entrepreneurship”, brought together over 200 experts and stakeholders from 39 countries around the MENA region and beyond.
Results of the Asian and the Pacific Incubator Conference in Vietnam (AAPIC 2007) The “Asian and the Pacific Incubator Conference (AAPIC) 2007” is being jointly organized by the Information for Development Program (infoDev) of the World Bank and the CRC-TOPIC Business Incubator (Hanoi University of Technology). Over 200 experts and stakeholders from 38 countries in the region participated in the conference.
Regional Conference of the ECA Network of Business Incubators and Technology Parks The Regional Conference of the Eastern Europe and Central Asia (ECA) Network of Business Incubators and Technology Parks was held on September 17 – 20 in Yerevan, Armenia. The conference brought together over 100 participants from 15 countries in the region, and was opened by the Minister of Trade and Economic Development of Armenia.
IASP World Conference on Science & Technology Parks 2008 - Call for Papers A conference on "The role of science parks in accelerating knowledge economy growth – contrasts between emerging and more developed economies" will be held in Johannesburg, South Africa from 14 to 17 September, 2008
Mekong Region Statekholder Awareness Forum Summary of the Executive Forum for "Business Incubation as an Effective Tool for Economic Development" held on 22nd June 2007 in Bangkok, Thailand

Events

Papers

PROMOTING INNOVATION THROUGH TECHNOPARKS IN KAZAKHSTAN Technoparks are believed to promote economic growth and generate value by enhancing the ability of its tenants —high technology firms — to survive and grow in a very competitive environment. Nevertheless, there is conflicting evidence regarding the actual effectiveness of technoparks. As regards Kazakhstan, it differs from developed countries in that most of its R&D activities are carried out by public organizations rather than businesses. No noticeable shift towards firm-based R&D occurred during the 1990s. This fact reflects that Kazakh technoparks do not really act as vehicles for the commercialization of new technologies.
Support for the technological innovation in Central America: The experience of the fund for the Technological and Entrepreneurial Modernization of Panama This document evaluates the results of a recent experience of support to the innovation in Central America, the Fund for the Technological and Entrepreneurial Modernization of Panama (FOMOTEC). Moreover, these are compared with those of the National Fund of Technological and Productive Development of Chile (FONTEC). On this base, the document presents some lessons and policy recommendations related to the policies designed for technological innovation in the small enterprise, especially for the Latin America countries that have less experience in this subject. It is available in Spanish only.
Operative guide for competitivity programs for the small and medium enterprise This document presents a series of recommendations aimed at guiding the people working at the Inter-American Development Bank and the execution agencies in the identification, design, approval, execution and evaluation process related to competitivity programs designed for the small and medium enterprise. The framework of this guide is the small and médium enterprise strategy (GN-1885-corr), published in 1995, the national strategies of entrepreneurial development prepared by the Bank between 1995 and 1997 and the competitivity strategy currently prepared by the Research Department. As a knowledge management tool, this document also includes references about other policies performed by the Bank related to competitivity, bibliographic notes about best practices and work principles, and mentions about some loan and technical cooperation operations of the Bank that can serve as practical examples to the new operations orientated to improve the competitivity of the small and medium enterprise. This working paper is being published with the sole objective of contributing to the debate on a topic of importance to the region, and to elicit comments and suggestions from interested parties. This paper has not gone through the Department’s peer review process or undergone consideration by the SDS Management Team. As such, it does not reflect the official position of the Inter-American Development Bank. It is available in Spanish only.
The public-private collaboration in the small enterprise support: Seven case studies of Latin America This report explores the dynamics of public-private partnerships in the design, execution and evaluation of small enterprise support programs in the Region. Based on seven case studies, the report highlights the increasingly important role that the private sector plays in the institutional schemes designed to support the development of small firms, and the challenges that lay ahead regarding the effectiveness and enhancement of public-private coordination. This working paper is being published with the sole objective of contributing to the debate on a topic of importance to the region, and to elicit comments and suggestions from interested parties. This paper has not gone through the Department's peer review process or undergone consideration by the SDS Management Team. As such, it does not reflect the official position of the Inter-American Development Bank. It is available in Spanish only.
Fostering the entrepreneurial activity in Latin America and the Caribbean: Suggests for projects formulation Programs and policies to foster entrepreneurship are increasingly being promoted in Latin America and the Caribbean. Small municipalities, civil society organizations and different government agencies are implementing initiatives to disseminate the entrepreneurship culture and to facilitate the creation of new firms. The present document portrays guidelines and practical case studies to support these organizations in the design of projects that will effectively foster entrepreneurship in Latin America and the Caribbean. Permission is granted to reproduce this paper in whole or in part for noncommercial purposes only and with proper attribution to the author(s), the Sustainable Development Department, and the Inter-American Development Bank. Publication available in Spanish only.
The BID group and the small and medium enterprise (1990-2004): Results of 15 years of work This document describes the activities performed by the BID group between 1990 and 2005 aimed at supporting the small and medium enterprises (SME). It includes, in its first chapter, a brief analysis of the importance of the SME in Latin America and the Caribbean, the reasons behind the implementation of support policies and programs, and the challenges and opportunities that face the sector in the present environment, characterized by globalization, regional integration and technological change. The second chapter explores the institutional and strategic framework of the BID group in which the support operations aimed at SME are based, and then presents the statistics about the loans and the technical cooperations in the last 15 years associated with the improving of the entrepreneurial environment conditions, the financing access and the development of the market of entrepreneurial development services. The final chapter of the report includes a recapitulation of the lessons learned as result of the support operations and the future challenges related to the support of the BID group destined to the small and medium enterprises. Available in Spanish only.
Is Youth Entrepreneurship a Necessity or an Opportunity?: A First Exploration of Household and New Enterprise Surveys in Latin America This paper highlights the importance of youth entrepreneurship in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the challenges and opportunities faced by young entrepreneurs. The authors analyze the differences between youth who become entrepreneurs by necessity or by opportunity and also review the scope and quality of policies and programs that governments, development agencies and civil society are implementing to support the groups of young entrepreneurs. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Inter-American Development Bank. Permission is granted to reproduce this paper in whole or in part for noncommercial purposes only and with proper attribution to the author(s), the Sustainable Development Department, and the Inter-American Development Bank. This document is available in English only.
Seed Capital for financing new enterprises: Advances and lessons learned in Latin America The report explores the advances and lessons learned from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, El Salvador and Peru as regards seed capital for financing new enterprises with high growth potential. After performing an inventory of the public and private financial instruments to support fast growing businesses, the study focuses on four cases of Chile and Colombia which, because of their antiquity and variety, offer an interesting learning opportunity to the people in charge of designing this sort of interventions. These cases are: the subsidy lines to innovative ventures and the lines for cofinancing risk capital funds of the Production Fostering Corporation of Chile, the angel investors’ net of the Octantis incubator in Chile and the risk capital fund Mercurius Ventures in Colombia. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Inter-American Development Bank Permission is granted to reproduce this paper in whole or in part for noncommercial purposes only and with proper attribution to the author(s), the Sustainable Development Department, and the Inter-American Development Bank. Available in Spanish only.
Institutional Capacities for Small Business Policy Development in Latin America and the Caribbean This study provides a quantitative description of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Latin America and the Caribbean. It highlights the quality of the information available in the region and, in doing so, also identifies gaps in the data. The study also presents a comparative analysis of the capacity of national MSME institutions to support small business development. Based on this assessment, the authors also draw attention to the disparate levels of institutional capacity in the region. The study recommends the development of an MSME Institutional Learning System to organize and promote the sharing of information among MSME support institutions of all types in the region, and between them and their international counterparts and international development organizations. Permission is granted to reproduce this paper in whole or in part for noncommercial purposes only and with proper attribution to the author(s), the Sustainable Development Department, and the Inter-American Development Bank. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Inter-American Development Bank. The document is available in English only.

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