A quarter of entrepreneurs have a national origin other than that of Norway, according to new figures from Statistics Norway.
Costs figures from Statistics Norway Tuesday shows that a growing number of founders in Norway are people from other countries.
Since Statistics Norway began compiling these statistics in 2002, the proportion of business start-ups from countries outside the EU, EEA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand has increased from 6 to 14 percent.
– This confirms three important things. Firstly, it confirms a strong desire to establish businesses among the many people coming to Norway, a trend we have observed for several years. We depend entirely on this will. Second, it confirms that the Norwegian economy is an open economy that receives and owns elements from other countries. Third, it confirms the need for international competence and dynamism, Abelia Managing Director Øystein E. Søreide tells E24.
At the same time, 10.3 percent come from the EU/EEA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and 70.7 percent from Norway.
read also
Criticism for start-ups: – Fears that a generation of entrepreneurs will disappear
– A light point
Søreide adds that over time, many important advances have been made in the field of entrepreneurship and start-up activities.
– It has never been easier to start a business in Norway. It is very good. The next task is to get more people to survive and grow.
Never before have so many companies been created in Norway. In 2019, it was created 65,600 new businesses. In October, Statistics Norway released figures showing that only 28.4 percent of businesses newly established in 2013 survived until 2018.
read also
Record number of business deaths among start-ups
More open to hiring immigrants
Unity Spark is a voluntary organization that aims to help entrepreneurs increase their chances of success in multicultural Norway. The company will launch a platform in December that will help entrepreneurs expand their network.
– It’s great that many people are starting out on their own. In Norway, we know that many people start their own businesses to avoid unemployment or underemployment, explains Francine Jensen, president of Unity Spark.
She wrote a master’s thesis on multicultural entrepreneurship in Norway, and half of the people she spoke to started out on their own because they were unemployed or overqualified.
– Immigrant entrepreneurs, for example, are generally more open to hiring immigrants than the rest of the population and therefore play a central role in inclusion efforts, she adds.
“Music practitioner. Passionate bacon fanatic. Reader. Food enthusiast. Alcohol nerd. Gamer. Twitter maven.”
