The winners of the Estonian preliminary round for the 2017 European Enterprise Promotion Awards are Enterprise Village of Estonia, introducing a basic knowledge of business and economy through role-playing games for children and young people and Tech Sisters, popularising the IT field among women and girls.
Jury chairman, Deputy Secretary General for the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications, Viljar Lubi said they wish to recognise local initiatives, who with their original ideas, are able to attract a large number of people towards entrepreneurship. „Launching something original and at the same time popular is not an easy task. In a sense it is like the Eurovision Song Contest, one must not only stand out in the eyes of their native public, but capture a wider audience. Introducing business opportunities is important both from the perspective of professional fulfillment, and imperative for the entire economy of Estonia."
„In Enterprise Village of Estonia, we promote entrepreneurship through role-playing games that teach a basic knowledge of business and economics. The most significant impact of the game is the creation of a positive attitude with respect to entrepreneurship. We believe that in each person lies an enterprising initiator,“ said the CEO of Enterprise Village of Estonia, Evelin Rätsep.
„Tech Sisters inspires and encourages women and girls to step out of their comfort zone. We organise a variety of IT-related workshops for women and encourage them to carry on learning and sharing their experiences with each other. Digital literacy increases the chance of successfully implementing oneself in the labour market and moving from being an IT service consumer, to a creator," commented the leader of Tech Sisters, Mari-Liis Lind.
Estonian preliminary round for the 2017 European Enterprise Promotion Awards is followed by a pan-European round, which this year takes place in Estonia, namely within the framework of the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the EU during the SME Assembly - a meeting of the representatives of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), on November 22-24.