The Centennial Fund and The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Assessments of the Entrepreneurial Sector
During the year 2010-2011, the National Entrepreneurship Center through The Centennial Fund contracted with Alfaisal University to participate in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Project (GEM) which measures baseline data regarding entrepreneurial conditions and activities within participating countries across the globe. The final report concluded that Saudi Arabia scored well in physical and commercial infrastructure, opportunities for start ups, entrepreneurial motivation, societal support, financing availability, and tax policy. The Kingdom did less well with protecting intellectual property, government programs, supporting female entrepreneurs, non-tax policies, research and development transfer, market entry barriers, and education. Recommendations for improvement for consideration by policymakers and other stakeholders were made in these areas.
The partnership between The Centennial Fund, under the leadership of Mrs. Munira Al-Ghamdi, Manager of the National Entrepreneurship Centre, and Alfaisal University represents for the second consecutive year that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has participated as a member of the GEM consortium. Over the course of the year data was collected in the form of an Adult Population.
