BSI_4Women
The BSI_4Women (Baltic Business Development Initiative for Refugee Women) aims to provide assistance to women who have had to escape conflict zones. The project is centered on female refugees from Ukraine, among others, with the objective of aiding them in reestablishing life stability and achieving professional independence through the initiation of their own innovative enterprises.
The primary goal of the project is to pilot solutions and tools that foster the creation of a cohesive support ecosystem for viable and innovative startups. This initiative aims to effectively aid refugee women from conflict-ridden countries in re-entering the labor market, nurturing their innovative business concepts, prototyping and testing novel products and services, establishing startups, and attracting funding and investors for the most promising female entrepreneurs in the participating countries.
The primary result of the project will be the formulation of a blueprint for the functioning, funding, and administration of a transnational investment fund/mechanism/network that bolsters the growth of inventive business concepts and startups led by women entrepreneurs and innovators not only from Ukraine but also from other nations facing similar circumstances.
The lead partner of the project is the Rzeszow Regional Development Agency from Poland, with other participating members being:
- More and Romsdal County Council (Norway),
- Business Hub Central Denmark (Denmark),
- Tallinn Science and Business Park Tehnopol (Estonia),
- Kaunas Science and Technology Park (Lithuania),
- Ventspils High Technology Park (Latvia),
- Dalarna Science Park (Sweden).
The BSI_4Women project co-funded by the Interreg Baltic Sea Region programme helps the transformation working towards a green and resilient Baltic Sea region.
On August 27-28, 2024, a pre-incubation program was held for female refugees interested in entrepreneurship. After the pre-incubation, participants had the opportunity to apply for a 6-month incubator program starting in October 2024.
Read more here: https://www.startupincubator.ee/en/bsi_4women-entrepreneurial-gateway/
Read more about the project here.
Project budget: 2 100 976.70 EUR
EU co-financing: EUR 1 574 279.86, including EUR 1 396 777.36 from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and EUR 177 502.50 from the Norwegian Funds.
