479 beneficiaries, thanks to the Triangular Cooperation initiative

The Virtual Training in Entrepreneurship and Innovation was held from September to November 2019 and conducted by the Universidad EAN (EAN University - Colombia). Conducted within the framework of the Triangular Cooperation project Entrepreneurship and Business Development in Mesoamerica - EDEM, the training counted with participants from Colombia, Honduras, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Costa Rica, among others, to encourage the use of methodologies and tools aimed at strengthening entrepreneurship in the Mesoamerican region.

The project "Entrepreneurship and Business Development in Mesoamerica - EDEM" is a triangular cooperation initiative involving Colombia through the Presidential Agency for International Cooperation, APC-Colombia, Mesoamerica (Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Dominican Republic) and the European Union through its emblematic ADELANTE Programme. This project is focused on contributing to the consolidation of entrepreneurship and business development strategies in the aforementioned countries.

The EDEM Project outlines four objectives focused on the strengthening of entrepreneurship policies and the implementation of successful financial and non-financial tools in Colombia. In this sense, the successful transfer and implementation of these tools is based on strengthening the skills of consultants and entrepreneurs belonging to the national ecosystems. Hence, the initiative to develop the Virtual Training Diploma in Entrepreneurship and Innovation offered by the project and conducted by the Institute for Sustainable Entrepreneurship of the EAN University in Colombia.

Although a total of 918 people took part in the Training, 52% of them managed to pass the course and additionally, a number of objectives were met according to the Final Report of the Institute for Sustainable Entrepreneurship of EAN University: "Clearly, two of the specific coverage objectives were met: (i) having a platform available with a capacity of up to 800 participants - which was largely exceeded as there were more than 900 participants on the platform at all times - and (ii) graduating at least 300 participants - which was successfully achieved as 479 participants had passed and got the virtual diploma in Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the end of the training process.”

The Training covered six modules, starting with an online "entry test" and a self-assessment exercise at the end of each module that was passed with at least 70 points. The first phase was introductory, the second covered tools for entrepreneurship and creative processes, such as "Agile methodologies" and "Design Thinking". The third phase covered the topic of Sustainability and Circular Economy and the fourth phase was about Validation, and specifically dealt with the definition of business models, methodologies, and prototyping, among others. The fifth phase was focused on marketing and sales and, finally, module six developed topics on finance in entrepreneurship.

To conclude, here are some comments shared by the Training beneficiaries:

• "Thank you very much for the experience offered; I am very satisfied with the development of the programme and I hope to be with you on a future occasion". Jamiht Alexander Ochica Herrera - Colombia.
• "I am very grateful for the opportunity. You are very professional and have provided me with knowledge and tools to offer a better service from my position, as a consultant. In addition, you induced me to further explore new trends and linkages for a stronger ecosystem". Catalina Roldán Azofeifa - Costa Rica.
• "I am delighted with what I've learned during the Diploma programme; I would like to be part of every diploma that will be carried out in the future , and keep on learning from those experienced people. Thank you very much for this valuable opportunity that you gave me. God bless the work you do". Ana Elizabeth Silva Ordoñez - Honduras.