Edventures Making Entrepreneurship Accessible To Everyone

Photo by Viktor Forgacs on Unsplash

The Labour Market Is Broken

The current global population is roughly 7.9 billion people. 200 years ago, this figure stood at a mere 1 billion people. This means that in just a span of two centuries, the total number of people in the world has grown a staggering sevenfold!

Translated even further, this data indicates that the competition for natural, economic and social resources has grown seven times more than it was in the 1800s. It goes without saying then, that we are living in a world where demand beats supply in almost every sector, and this is the case when it comes to employment.

According to an ILO 2020 report, the global number of unemployed people who are actively seeking employment stood at some 188 million in 2020. In addition, 165 million people lacked enough paid work. A further 120 million had either given up actively searching for work or otherwise lacked access to the labour market. In total, well over 470 million people worldwide suffer from unemployemt or underemployment and the figures could escalate post the Covid 19 pandemic.

But why is this the case? The World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2020 (WESO) report, explained that the slowing global economic growth means that, as the global labour force increases, not enough new jobs are being generated to absorb new entrants to the labour market. Simply put, we are training more people than we can employ.

This very realisation, that the world has more employable individuals than it has jobs, is the basis upon which we, Edventures exist.

We believe that if more underemployed and unemployed people could receive accessible and affordable entrepreneurship learning and training, they would be better equipped to start their businesses to provide for themselves, instead of waiting around for jobs that are already scarce.

Who Are Edventures?

You have probably come across us or our content at some point, or maybe it’s your first time interacting with us. Whichever the case, it is highly likely that we have not been properly introduced. So, allow us to formally introduce ourselves. We are Edventures, an EdTech whose mission is to make entrepreneurship accessible to everyone. In fact, at Edventures, we believe in a world where no idea is inhibited.

We pride ourselves in being a company that values the power entrepreneurship wields. Using Artificial Intelligence, we strive to help entrepreneurs, get timely and relevant information, tailor-made for their specific business needs.

Why Do We Care So Much About Entrepreneurship?

A lot of research reveals that an estimated 600 million jobs will be needed by 2030 to absorb the growing global workforce. But we are already far too deep in the job scarcity quick sand, so where will we get enough jobs to cover the existing deficit and generate 600 million extra vacancies? The World Bank may have a clue.

In their research, formal Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) result in more than 50% of employment worldwide. They also contribute up to 40% of the national income (GDP) in emerging economies and create 7 out of every 10 jobs. With this in mind, organisations such as Junior Achievement (JA) saw the potential that entrepreneurship has in narrowing the gap that exists in terms of unemployment.

Sharing their view, Edventures figured that if more unemployed people could receive entrepreneurship education and training, they would be more equipped to start their businesses, instead of waiting around for jobs that are already scarce. Consequently, should they start their enterprises, these formerly unemployed individuals will have created jobs for at least 7 out of 10 people who are to be employed.

This is why we have taken it upon ourselves to begin the journey towards making entrepreneurship accessible to everyone through creating awareness about and providing a space for entrepreneurship education and training.

If Entrepreneurship Is So Important, Why Aren’t Many People Focusing On It?

One of the most misconstrued facts about entrepreneurship is that people know how to do it, they just chose not to. On the contrary, only about 9% of entrepreneurs globally hold a Bachelor’s degree in business. While a degree in entrepreneurship isn’t the sole indicator that one is knowledgeable about, or capable of entrepreneurship, this partly indicates that many entrepreneurs do not have the specialised knowledge that they need for their craft. This is a gap that widens even further in developing countries.

But what really prevents entrepreneurs from getting the knowledge they need to start and run their businesses? What factors make it difficult to learn Entrepreneurship? What solutions does Edventures offer?

From our point of view, three things in particular come in the way of gaining skills and knowledge in entrepreneurship. These three things include:

- Poor Education Systems

Most education systems are linked to the previous century’s principles. But the world is changing, and fast. These changes in technology, work environments, workforce diversity, buyer preferences and entrepreneurship as a whole, have not been factored into many education systems to date. The result is an educated workforce that has difficulty meeting the demands of the present market.

Personalised entrepreneurship learning will play a great role in remedying this problem. By training business-minded individuals on the expectations of the individualised and flexible 21st century business environment, and equipping them with real-time relevant information, the challenge that poor education systems pose to entrepreneurship will be reduced.

- Financial Illiteracy

The second hindrance for entrepreneurs when it comes to gaining knowledge and skills in their craft, is the lack of financial literacy and financial access. Simply put, the majority of potential entrepreneurs lack knowledge on how to make meaningful investments, as well as information on the financial services they require as entrepreneurs.

Again, personalised entrepreneurship education provides entrepreneurs with relevant information about finances. It aims to help them to make wiser financial decisions and plan better their business’ finances, all in a bid to improve the growth of entrepreneurship.

- Social Exclusion

Lastly, the fact that some societies discriminate against certain individuals, especially on the basis of gender, also gets in the way of entrepreneurship. Social exclusion limits the number of individuals who can become entrepreneurs by preventing them from accessing the requisite tools, facilities or even the knowledge required for entrepreneurship.

Although we may not single handedly have the ability to reverse social exclusion through our core mandate, we believe that personalised entrepreneurship education can empower people to find ways to deal with this discriminatory practice. The fact that Edventures is open to everyone, irrespective of their social, economic, religious, racial standing, means that social inclusion can be enhanced. Through this enhanced inclusion, entrepreneurship will have a chance to grow if not to thrive.

How To Receive Entrepreneurship Education And Training

A lot needs to be done to get more people on board with entrepreneurship. But, in summary, this is our contribution towards a world where more people have access to means that help them provide for themselves, and you should join the course too. Sign up to our waitlist 📝 to begin your entrepreneurship education and training journey. Don’t leave out your friends either. After all, we said no idea is inhibited, right?