Entrepreneurial activity in Catalonia higher than in Spain and Europe

Entrepreneurial activity rose in Catalonia last year from 6.9% to just over 8%, above the averages for both Spain as a whole (6.1%) and Europe (7.8%). The figures presented on Monday come from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), a London-based project that annually assesses the level of entrepreneurial activity in different countries.

The GEM report also estimates that some 6.6% of the adult population are potential entrepreneurs capable of starting a business within the next three years. While this figure for Catalonia in 2017 was higher than in previous years, it is till some way from the 18% of the population in the most innovative countries.

The report identifies the average entrepreneur as a 39-year-old man, although the study shows that the number of women in entrepreneurial activity rose to 7%, above the average for Spain and Europe. Meanwhile, the perspectives for growth for new business projects, at 6%, are well below those for the most innovative countries, where the figure is 17%.

Among the report’s other conclusions is that established business projects over three and a half years old account for 9% of the adult population. As for abandonments, 1.8% of projects have closed down or been sold in the past 12 months, a similar number to the previous year. Most projects are in the consumption sector (51%), followed by the service sector (29%).

In Catalonia, the Barcelona area has the most entrepreneurial activity, at a rate of 8.4%. The head of the Barcelona regional council, Marc Castells, who presented the report, pointed to the various attractions of the Catalan capital as the key factor in the creation of new startups, although he also called for “more policies to develop entrepreneurship.”