- When: 27 May 2021, 9AM EST | 3PM CET
- Registration: To register for this webinar, please click here.
In light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, on 27 May 2021 the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) are jointly organizing an event titled Blue Entrepreneurship and MSMEs Resurgence.
Background
The COVID-19 pandemic is having unprecedented impacts across the globe, especially on human health and economic activities. In this context, Governments are intensifying their efforts to combat the global spread of COVID-19 by enacting various measures to support public health systems, safeguard the economy and to ensure public order and safety.
Likewise, entrepreneurs have looked for creative solutions to keep their activities afloat, addressing different challenges they are experiencing. The downturn in the global economy following this huge sanitary and health crisis represents unprecedented challenges, but will provide opportunities as well.
Objectives
The objective of this virtual discussion is to identify and analyse the main impacts of COVID-19 on entrepreneurs and Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), providing them with insights in order to better understand and navigate the unprecedented posed by the pandemic. Discussions will provide an opportunity for an intermediate impact assessment of the disruption, would help to identify a set of priority policies and measures for immediate basic re-opening measures for small business-owners, in order to facilitate resurgence, and develop a longer- term social and green economic recovery strategy where the entrepreneurship and MSMEs play a central role leaving no one behind.
The webinar will also help to raise awareness of challenges on post COVID-19 resurgence of MSMEs and share practices on how they could be addressed to facilitate the role of entrepreneurship and MSMEs in the green, sustainable social and economic recovery.
Learning Objectives:
- What is the impact of COVID 19 on blue economy? Has it accelerated the shift toward a blue economy, including in SIDS countries?
- How have entrepreneurs and MSMEs in the blue economy adapted to the COVID-19 crisis? Does COVID-19 provide new opportunities for entrepreneurs and MSMEs in the blue economy and how could those be seized?
- How can government policies ensure the integration of entrepreneurs and MSME in the sustainable blue recovery?
- What are the key challenges and good practices to be considered to facilitate MSMEs contribution to the blue economy in the aftermath of COVID 19? What capacity building programmes are available in this regard?
Speakers
Speakers in the webinar will include:
- Ms. Suzanne Johnson, Senior Advisor, UN Global Compact, Sustainable Ocean Business
- Ms. Angelique Antat, Principal Secretary, Entrepreneurship and Industry Department, Ministry of Investment, Entrepreneurship and Industry, Republic of Seychelles
- Ms. Nicole Leotaud, Executive Director, Caribbean Natural Resources Institute, Trinidad and Tobago
- Ms. Tatiana Glad, Co-founder, Impact Hub Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Ms. Lynette Holder, CEO, Small Business Association of Barbados, Barbados