Authorities of the Vice Ministry of MSMEs; Liz Grütter, vice president of the Association of Entrepreneurs of Paraguay (Asepy), and other leaders participated in the VI Italy-Latin America SME Forum in Antioquia (Colombia). The Paraguayan delegation participates in different workshops and tours to learn in detail the evolutionary process of small Colombian companies, with the aim of replicating the success in our country.
The VI Italy-Latin America SMEs Forum is a space for Italian-Latin American dialogue on public policies, business opportunities between companies and technological collaborations, focused on micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and sustainable regional development.
This year delegates from the 21 member countries of the Italo-Latin American International Organization (IILA) (20 Latin American republics and Italy) participated. The Paraguayan delegation was made up of the Vice Minister of Mipymes Isaac Godoy; the Director of Entrepreneurship, Víctor Acosta; president of the Mipymes Federation, architect Luis Tavella; and the vice president of Asepy, Liz Grütter.
Liz Grütter, who was the moderator of the workshop Eknowledge economy and SMEs, said: “During the meeting that I had to moderate, we learned about how countries put entrepreneurship at the center of the equation with organized and articulated public policies, facilitating seed capital. It was a very inspiring space.”
On the other hand, the vice president said that she had the opportunity to talk with Colombian authorities to learn more about the work and everything that can be done to improve the Paraguayan entrepreneurial ecosystem.
At another point, he said that in countries like Colombia, the university plays a fundamental role, since knowledge is put at the service of MSMEswhich shortens the gap that exists between the academy and the business community.
Finally, the national delegation participated in a forum in which funds and financial instruments were discussed to SMEs. “They shared successful experiences and the speakers described how they achieve profound social transformations through access to credit, something that is still lacking in our country,” he lamented.
about the forum
The SME Forum was instituted by the Italy – Latin America and Caribbean Conference, the main mechanism for political dialogue between Italy and Latin America, in its VI Edition in December 2013. The successful Italian experience on production systems based on SMEs constitutes one of the fundamental premises of the forum.
This meeting aims to articulate proposals to face the new challenges and indicate new paths to explore, so that the notable numerical and occupational weight of smaller companies also becomes a greater qualitative weight, in terms of sustainability, innovation, competitiveness and social and productive inclusion.
In the development of its activities, the SMEs Forum has also become an incubator for international cooperation projects and a space of opportunities for business collaborations.
